Moment of Weakness
by anonymouslyme8
Summary: Post-TLJ: Rey and Kylo Ren share an intimate moment. The Force continues to thrust them together amidst the ongoing clash between the First Order and the Resistance. As the war rages on, they push and pull at each other. Who will relent? Can Rey reveal Ben Solo from behind the mask of Kylo Ren? Will the Force finally bring balance? Strict 18 plus only, Reylo angst and smut abound.
1. Chapter 1

**Author** **notes** : If you are here for smut, I won't judge you. You will find it in: Chapter 1, Chapter 10, Chapter 11, Chapter 17, Chapter 21, Chapter 24, and the Epilogue.

Enjoy the story, or the smut, if that's what you're here for!

* * *

She rounded a corner on the verge of breaking into a run. Somehow, she had avoided any encounters with Stormtroopers thus far, but she knew her luck was bound to run out. She heard the hiss of a door opening, and whipped around, her hand on the lightsaber at her hip. She scanned for motion, her muscles coiled for a fight, but she saw nothing. After a heart-pounding moment, she turned back to the corridor.

Her heart stopped as she found herself face-to-face with a dark figure. She struggled to draw in a breath as she scanned up to his face.

But she already knew who stood before her. She did not need to see his brooding face to know that, inches before her, stood Kylo Ren.

She started to back away from him at the same moment he started to step forward. He reached his arm out, and her heart strangled out a panicked beat. She heard another door opening, and before she could react, they had stepped through it.

The door closed, but she could not break eye contact. It was magnetic, demanding; his dark gaze held her as if in a trance and she felt unable to move, to breathe...

Together, they drew in a shaking breath, breaking the icy silence. Her eyes flitted across his face, traced his scar, his lips. His scent - masculine, clean, sharp - washed over her. She could still feel the cool metal of her lightsaber beneath her fingers; the warmth from his proximity was a sharp contrast. Her heart raced.

In a flash, the reality of their surroundings hit her - a supply closet, a few crates, the white glow of utility lights. They were alone.

How long had they been standing, staring, in silence? His lips parted as if to speak, and her fingers tightened on the hilt of her saber.

With a small step, he closed the gap between them. She stood firm as his lips met hers, his ungloved hand gently tipping her chin upward. She heard his gloves hit the floor half a second later, before she had realized he had taken them off. Her mouth opened to his kiss as she registered the soft warmth of his lips and her hand fell from her lightsaber to hang loosely at her side. For a moment that seemed an eternity, she was frozen in place, tasting arousal, desperation, loneliness, and even hatred on his lips.

The trance seemed to break all at once, even as he kissed her hungrily. Energy returned to her arms at her side, and the Force coursed through her fingers like electricity. She reached out with it, only her fingers betraying her intentions with rigid motion. She felt his saber in her phantom grasp, slid the Force around it like tendrils. The formless fist closed around it, lifted it -

A sharp clatter rang out in the heavy silence as both their lightsabers hit the wall and fell to the floor farthest from them.

He pulled away from her in surprise, his dark eyes searching her face, and then running down her outstretched arm. She could feel his gaze as if it were his fingers, slowly running from her shoulder, to her fingertips, to their sabers on the ground.

Her breaths were short and shallow as his eyes returned to hers searchingly. Her eyes slid across his shoulder to watch his arm raising to hers. Their breathing seemed in rhythm; neither could speak, could catch their breath. Her arm hung suspended by some invisible string, heavy and weightless at once. What had she done, disarming both of them? Was he reaching for his lightsaber or her hand? Her chest felt heavy, as if a weight was pressing on it.

Their eyes were fixed together on their hands, outstretched towards the lightsabers discarded on the floor, towards the other's hand.

She drew in a shuddering breath, the weight on her chest vanishing, the string on her arm snapping. His eyes darted back to hers, his pupils black and dilated with fear or…something else. Her ears filled with the hum of the ship, with their gasping breaths, with the blood rushing through her.

They crashed together like ocean waves. Their arms pulled inward in a frenetic embrace as their mouths met in a ravenous kiss. She pulled, he pushed, until her back hit the wall of the closet, knocking her breath into his.

Physical sensation overwhelmed her mind – his lips were soft, his mouth warm. He had the slightest hint of stubble on his face. His torso was strong and firm and energy coursed through his arms to his fingertips. Everywhere he touched her – her shoulder, her arm, her waist – he left hot traces, fingerprints. One of her hands entwined in his hair, the other pressed against the back of his neck, pulling him closer, closer.

He broke the kiss to move his mouth down her jaw to her neck. His hot, humid breath marked the path, leaving her prickling with goosebumps. His hands tugged at the neckline of her tunic, exposing more skin to his explorations. Almost as if on purpose, he kept his body from pressing against hers. He kissed where her neck met her shoulders, her clavicle, the triangle of skin exposed by her tunic. Her hands clasped the back of his head, her shoulders pressed into the wall behind her, allowing her to raise her chest to his advances.

Arousal burned between her legs like a bonfire. She felt herself quickly careening out of control. One thought bubbled to the top above all others. _Kneel_ , she commanded him, pleaded him wordlessly.

As if he heard her, he sank to his knees in front of her, his plaintive dark eyes fixed on hers. She couldn't draw in a breath; each gasp caught in her throat. She was lightheaded with anticipation. Her hands fell from his head to press against the wall behind her for support. His eyes lowered to stare straight ahead of him, where she burned the most. Her legs supported her numbly as his hands reached up to the waistband of her trousers and slipped beneath it.

Sensually, he drew her trousers and pants down in one dripping motion. Against her will, a choking groan escaped her, falling somewhere between frustration and arousal.

His hands traced up her thighs lightly until they rested just inches from her burning clit. She sighed, and his eyes flicked up to hers as she looked down at him. Not breaking eye contact, he leaned forward, parting her outer lips with his thumbs. She let her head fall back on her shoulders and her eyes close, but she held her breath in agonal expectation. She lifted her leg to rest her thigh on his shoulder as she felt his breath on her desperate flesh.

His tongue found its mark just as she thought she couldn't stand it any longer. A wave of relaxation spread through her body as he reached behind her to pull her hip into him. One of her hands lazily found his head again as her fingers combed into his hair. She moaned softly, tentatively as she gave into the pleasure. Her legs trembled but his firm grasp on her hip provided stony support as she searched for a handhold on the wall.

"Ben," she gasped, surprising herself. Her whisper hung in the air between them, the first word either one of them had spoken since the encounter in the corridor.

Her knees threatened to buckle as his tongue became more aggressive. His fingers dug into the flesh at her hip, blanching the skin beneath them. Her thigh pressed down on his shoulder, pinning his knees to the ground. He pressed her clitoris into her pubic bone with his mouth.

Pleasure rose within her, surging from her cunt to her gut and beyond. The wave built through her chest and into her throat, bringing delicious and unbearable pressure. Energy coursed through her as if she were a tightly coiled spring, ready at any moment to explode in a violent burst. Electricity boiled in her chest, teetering on the edge of lightning. She wanted to scream, to push him away, to pull him closer.

She collected the sensation within her like water in cupped hands, desperately trying to keep it in. She was quickly losing control and groaned with the effort of fighting the cresting wave.

Silence hit her like a blow to the head. For an eternal second, as warmth spread through her in a lazy tide, there was nothing she could feel but pleasure.

Sound rushed back – the pounding of her heart in her ears, her own gasping breaths, again the soft but ever-present hum of the ship – as she relished each pulse of her orgasm as it came. Her knuckles were white in his hair, and his mouth was warm and wet on her as he ceaselessly tortured her. Her surroundings took on a halo of warm gold. The wave coursed out her fingertips in a final crescendo, and the crates against the wall with her shuddered audibly.

He pulled away from her with a subtle, knowing smirk on his face. Her legs gave into their weakness slowly, and she sank to the ground with him as he tore off his shirt. She struggled to catch her breath as he stood to remove his trousers and pants before returning to sit next to her on the ground.

He watched her tentatively as her eyes ran over him. She examined his wide torso, his strong arms, his solid legs, before finally allowing herself to examine what she had to pretend didn't interest her.

He studied her face as she looked at his cock. He was hard, she presumed painfully so, and the sight of him like that awoke in her a yearning like nothing she had ever felt. Her eyes lingered a long moment before returning their gaze to his face. His eyes were simultaneously vulnerable and closed-off, he was torn between hope of more and fear that their moment would end as suddenly as it began.

She straddled him as she placed her hands on his shoulders, pushing him gently but insistently to lay back. It was his turn to tremble, and she felt the ripple of gooseflesh as it passed down his arms.

This time, she smirked knowingly as she took his erection in her hand. He groaned as she guided him into her.

She braced herself with her palms on his pecs as she lowered herself onto him. His hands clutched her waist as if anchoring himself in the present. His eyes were closed as she started to move her hips back and forth.

He seemed to realize gradually that he was still frozen in place. He drew his feet up to plant on the ground for leverage, and he shakily started thrusting up to her.

She swallowed as he started thrusting faster, deeper. Her eyes shut firmly as she struggled to not be overwhelmed by sensation. One of his hands crept upward to her breast and she whimpered as he for a moment grasped her too hard. His eyes flew open to examine her face and she managed a fleeting smile of reassurance.

She didn't feel her second orgasm coming until it was upon her. Her feet hooked onto his legs as her toes curled, and her hands clenched into tight fists, leaving temporary red scratches where her fingernails scraped his chest. She grunted with the impact of the pleasure, as if the wind had been knocked out of her. She pressed her hips down onto him, slowing his short frantic thrusts.

As quickly as the second orgasm had hit her, it was gone. She was breathless, slow to react, and he startled her by rolling suddenly so that he was on top.

Her legs wrapped around him and she snaked her hands up under his arms to his back. Each thrust was going deeper than before, and each time he thrust into her another aftershock hit her.

He leaned down to kiss her neck, and the feel of his mouth was too much to bear. Her fingernails dug into his back sharply as she struggled to draw in a breath.

He pulled away from her suddenly, his eyes closed. His breathing was ragged, interspersed with strangled groans.

He exhaled in a rush, and she watched his climax take him. His eyes were closed, his lips parted slightly, as carnal pleasure washed over his features. His strokes became slow, deliberate, strong until his breathing evened out. He stopped, and a moment later, rolled to the side of her.

They lay there, on the floor of the closet, struggling to catch their breath. Neither of them could bear to look at the other. Panic started to grip her as she wondered where this left them, as she realized they could be caught at any time. She was acutely aware of their lightsabers on the ground and how, in seconds, either one of them could be armed.

She realized that the hand closest to her was reaching out, and she held her breath, ready to summon her own lightsaber in defense.

Instead, his hand took hers, softly, and gave it the shyest squeeze. A moment later, he let go.

She sat up, reaching for her trousers. He sat up just slightly onto his elbow and watched her as she dressed. She smoothed her clothing and her hair, and then reached down to retrieve her lightsaber. She did not let him out of her peripheral vision, even though he did not move. Her heart pounding, she reached for the door, but something stopped her.

She glanced back at him once more, still watching her from the floor, sweat still glistening on his form. For a second, when she looked into his dark brown eyes, she wanted to stay.

The moment passed, and she slid out the door, not turning from his eyes until the light of the corridor jolted her back to reality. She darted off toward her escape pod, but not before she heard the door close behind her, leaving the reminder of her weakness and his pleading brown eyes only in her memory.


	2. Chapter 2

Shame washed over her as the pod ejected from the Star Destroyer. What had she succumbed to, in that closet? What part of her had held onto that carnal temptation and had now allowed her such a profound lapse in judgment?

She closed her eyes, burning with embarrassment. Unbidden, the image of his dark, pleading stare met her in the darkness. She ignited her lightsaber, letting out a scream of frustration, and she slashed at her own memory as if it stood before her.

The pod shuddered as it was caught in a tractor beam. She turned off the saber, peering out through the window to be sure it was the rebels who had caught her. The Millennium Falcon floated before her in a sea of stars, and a sense of relief washed over her. Home.

Too quickly, however, the sense of shame returned. She felt as if her tryst with Kylo Ren was broadcast on her face and she was sure someone would see it, and reveal her to everyone as a traitor. Irrationally, she wanted to cover herself, to hide so that no one would know her secret shame.

The loud crash of the bay door opening startled her back to reality a moment before her pod clashed onto the floor of the Falcon's cargo bay. She swallowed against the lump in her throat, steeling herself for the reunion she knew awaited her beyond the door. A knot twisted in her stomach as she opened the release hatch.

"Rey!" exclaimed a voice. Finn. "You made it!"

She climbed out of the pod, afraid her trembling legs would send her tumbling to the ground. "Yes," she managed, flashing a triumphant smile half of a second too late to be natural. Finn engulfed her in a friendly embrace. She returned it woodenly. Could he smell him on her?

The ship creaked and trembled as they made the jump to light speed. Finn's arm was around her shoulders as they ascended to the cockpit. He was babbling happily about her completed mission, but she didn't hear a word.

They arrived to the lounge just as Poe climbed out of the cockpit. Chewbacca roared a greeting through the door. Poe clasped her hand in a firm, congratulatory handshake. "Well done, Rey. You have the flight plan, I assume?"

Rey's hand was numb as she reached into her shirt to pull out the disc she had gone to obtain. Her skin burned suddenly where his lips had kissed her. It felt as if bright red traces would appear for everyone to see. The disc clattered onto the table, but she did not look down at it.

Poe's eyes scanned her, his brows furrowed with worry. "You saw him. Kylo Ren." It was a statement, though he had tried to keep his inflection in the territory of a question.

Her entire encounter on the Star Destroyer played in her mind in rapid-fire flashes. Saw him? "Yes," she said. It was a struggle to make her voice even.

"Are you alright?" asked Poe, and at the same time Finn: "Did he hurt you?"

"I'm fine," she said, in answer to both of them. "I'm just exhausted."

Poe nodded. He knew the look of stress in her eyes, and understood when not to push the subject. "We are a few hours from our rendezvous with General Organa and the Resistance. You should get some sleep."

Finn started to make up a cot near them, but Rey stopped him. "I want to change," she said, "these clothes smell like the First Order. I'll nap in the bunks."

"Don't worry," said Poe, his voice gentle. "We'll wake you if anything happens."

Rey nodded, trying to have a reassuring look on her face as she turned from Poe to Finn. "Don't worry about me," she said pointedly, to Finn.

Rey grabbed her bag from the ground and turned down the corridor towards the bunk room. Solitude engulfed her again, and this time she wondered what Ben Solo was feeling.

As soon as the door to the bunk room closed behind her, she began to peel off her clothes. She could smell him in the fabric, she could feel him everywhere. In a frustrated burst, she crumpled the clothes and threw them across the room. She dressed again quickly, burying her face in the clean fabric. She sat down on a bunk, drawing her knees up to her face. He filled her mind, even as she forcefully inhaled the clean scent of cloth rather than of him.

She was not supposed to feel these things. She was sworn to the Jedi Order, even if she was the last living Jedi. Romantic love was forbidden to her, as were the feelings of lust and hate that swirled in her like a storm. She knew she was wrong to feel them but she couldn't banish them, no matter how hard she tried.

Suddenly, she felt his presence; the Force bond between them had not broken. She looked up, raising her eyes just barely above her arm. He was there before her, and yet far away, sitting with his face in his hands. He noticed her a moment later, and he looked at her with hope and confusion.

Rage surged within her, against her bidding. "Get out!" she screamed, throwing the nearest object, a lamp, across the room where it shattered against the wall. As if heeding her, the vision faded, but not before she saw the pain of her rejection pierce through his eyes.

She laid on the cot, turning her back towards where he had been. She curled up tightly, drawing a blanket up over her face. Her eyes stung with tears she could not shed, but an uneasy sleep took her.

* * *

The command room of the Resistance bustled with activity. Even as the command officers were still and quiet, studying the flight plan Rey had brought back from her mission, the other officers were a flurry of activity in the background. The glow of the computer screens and projections cast every face in a red or green light, and it reminded Rey of the glow of her lightsaber.

Her mind had quieted following her rest on the Falcon, and she was much steadier when she had greeted General Organa. Even now, as they talked through strategy for their upcoming attack, she was able to focus most of her mind on the meeting at hand.

"We can head off the supply ships as they refuel here," General Organa said, pointing to a small star system on the map. "They will have to take off from the fuel station one at a time, allowing us to pick them off. If we succeed, the loss of their technical shipment will delay repair of the ammunitions facility long enough for us to regroup."

She shifted the view on the projection, showing a nearby airbase undoubtedly filled with First Order fighters. "This is where our air support becomes essential. We need a well-coordinated attack, with two squadrons dedicated to taking out the supply ships and one protecting our fleet from the onslaught of First Order fighters."

"Poe, you and your squadron will provide cover. It is essential that every one of your pilots be at their best. As soon as every supply ship is destroyed, you will provide cover while the other squadrons jump to Hyperspace. Then, it'll be up to you to get yourselves out of there," General Leia said sternly.

"Yes, ma'am," Poe said, with a small salute. These were the kinds of orders he found easiest to follow.

"As for the Star Destroyers – we can no longer let solo Resistance fighters board the ships unprotected." Leia glanced at Rey. "Even our prized Jedi."

Rey opened her mouth to protest, even as she began to wonder how much Leia knew about her last mission.

"It's simply too dangerous," Leia said, heading off her protests. "Kylo Ren grows stronger by the day and we cannot risk becoming too arrogant."

Rey nodded, feeling the eyes of everyone else on her. "You are simply too important to lose," Leia said, meeting Rey's eyes. She held eye contact for a long moment before looking around at everyone else. "Command dismissed. May the Force be with you."

Everyone started to disperse, and the buzz of conversation filled the silence. Rey rose to follow the others.

"Rey, wait. A word," said General Organa.

Rey stopped, and Leia walked over to sit at her side. Hesitantly, Rey sat back down, not quite brave enough to meet the general's eyes.

"I can't let you be in a position to be alone with Ben again," Leia said softly.

A dark red flush rose in Rey's cheeks. She wanted to run, to be as far away from this conversation as she could manage. Her instinct had been right – Leia did know something of what had happened on that ship.

Leia's hand took hers before she was able to act upon her urge to flee. Rey looked down at it, then up into Leia's soft, forgiving eyes.

"I may not be trained in the Force as you are, or as my brother was," she said, "but I have enough knowledge of it that I sometimes see clearly around those whom I love."

Rey's heart was beating in her throat. She tried to swallow, but something stuck in her neck, blocking her. She couldn't breathe.

"I do not know exactly what transpired on your mission, Rey, but I know you and Ben shared something close."

Rey took a shuddering breath. She didn't know!

"You needn't be ashamed, Rey. I love him, too. I do not implement any rules on you that I do not practice myself."

Rey's heart fluttered, and the warmth she often felt for Leia washed over her again. "There is still good in him," Rey said. "I feel it every day."

"I feel it too," Leia said, squeezing Rey's hand gently. "And I think you are the one who is going to bring him back to the light."

Leia's hand came up to rest on Rey's cheek. "Be careful around him," Leia warned. "I thought Han could bring him to the light, and…" She trailed off, her voice breaking slightly.

Rey took Leia's hand this time. "I will, I promise."

 _But as for being alone together_ , she thought, _I think the Force has other ideas_.

* * *

Kylo Ren sat alone in his chambers, both dreading and desiring beyond all else another connection with Rey. Every time he closed his eyes, he could see only her, smell only her, feel only her. He was haunted by their tryst in the closet; it was with him every waking moment and when he tried to sleep.

He had not been able to sleep since he had watched her walk away from him, since she had screamed at him to get out of her thoughts. What he had hoped was a step to bridging their disagreement seemed to have thrust her further away from him, and he didn't understand.

They had a connection; she must feel it too. They were pulled together as if by gravity, as a ship crashing to the ground. It had felt inevitable, uncontrollable. At every juncture he had been sure she would pull away, would fight or run, but instead they ignited like kindling to the flames of whatever passion ran between them. He refused believe their only connection was hatred – certainly, he did not hate her, and if she hated him, then _why_ would she have allowed him to…?

Again, the specter of their physical connection rose around him. He felt her skin, tasted her lips, smelled her hair. She was warm, and soft, and _alive_ with passion, with the Force, with arousal. He felt her fingers tightening in his hair, felt the weight of her as she forced him into the ground. He groaned as arousal threatened to take over him again.

He took a deep, steadying breath. He was careful not to allow these thoughts to run free, even in the privacy of his quarters. He had become horrified to imagine how she would react if the Force connected them and he was as such… indisposed by his arousing thoughts.

He buried his face in his hands. The plot of the First Order, the desire to rule the galaxy, for the first time was second in his thoughts. Rey, with her freckled skin and her piercing brown eyes, was first.


	3. Chapter 3

The first hints of light peeked over the horizon, casting everything in a bluish gold. The air was still and crisp, and the birds were only just starting their song in the quiet. Pine and dirt perfumed the air, and just a hint of petrichor was detectable from the evening's rain.

The only sound in Rey's ears was the hum of her lightsaber. She swung it through the exercises in time with her breath. _Control. Center_ , was her mantra of the morning. She could almost hear Luke's voice in her mind. _Reach out,_ it was saying, _feel_.

"Rey."

This time, the voice was audible, and unfamiliar. She swung around sharply, her saber in a defense position before her. Her heart rushed in her ears. She scanned back and forth, her senses on high alert, but she saw nothing but trees.

"Rey," the voice repeated. It was feminine and calm.

Rey's arms still held her saber rigidly before her, but this time, she felt a presence near her. The Force. She turned slowly.

Before her in the clearing, where she had been practicing her combat moments ago, stood a translucent figure, glowing blue-white. The figure wore traditional Jedi robes, hood covering its face. The figure was as tall as Rey, but a bit sturdier, and stood with legs firmly planted on the ground. It radiated strength, and control.

"Who are you?" Rey said, still unwilling to lower her saber. She had seen nothing like this before, and she didn't trust it not to be of sinister conjuring.

The figure reached up and lowered its hood. She was a woman, perhaps in her 40s, with firm, sharp features and a strong beauty. Her long brown hair was worn in a braid that cascaded over her shoulder to stop just before her waist. A lightsaber was unmistakable at her hip.

"A Jedi Master of old," she said simply. "Master Luke sent me to you, Rey."

"Luke is dead," Rey said. Her arms holding her saber faltered, but she did not lower them entirely.

"No," the woman said. Her voice was warm with just a hint of coarseness around the edges. Rey felt drawn to her presence. "Luke is with the force. As am I."

Rey wanted to trust this woman, but her heart was heavy with doubt. "I do not understand."

"It is possible for a Jedi to continue on as themselves when they become part of the Force. It is what I have done, and what many have done before me. It allows me to talk to you now, here, in the land of the living." The woman studied Rey's expression of disbelief, mistrust. "If you like, Rey, you can strike me with your blade. I am not a physical manifestation. However, I appear more strongly to those who are strong with the Force. Like you."

Rey stood for a moment, considering. Her hands tightened on the hilt of her saber before her thumb hit the button, deactivating the blade. She lowered her arms, but kept the lightsaber in her hand.

"Who are you?" Rey asked again, this time more kindly.

"I was called Rhona Asmé, in my time."

"I've not heard of you," Rey said.

The apparition chuckled. "No. You wouldn't have. I was a contemporary of many you may have heard of: Anakin Skywalker, Qui-Gon Jinn, Obi-Wan Kenobi-"

"You fought in the Clone Wars," Rey said.

"Yes." Rhona took a step forward to stand closer to Rey. Her feet did not touch the ground. "You have not heard of me because I was a student of the Unifying Force. We were few and far between in the Jedi Order, and not as respected as those who adhered to the Light."

Fear and distrust flashed through Rey, and they reflected on her face before she remembered to stop them. "You did not practice the Light side of the Force?" Her hand tightened on her lightsaber, even though she was not sure what good it would be against a formless spirit.

"It's not that simple," she answered. "The Unifying Force is a practice that believes there is no Light side, no Dark side to the Force. There is only balance. We believe that the Force, like nature, cannot be divided into two categories, not even good and evil.

"The Force, Rey, is like the lifeblood of the universe. It breathes life, it brings death; it is in the sunrise, the darkest night, the rainstorm, and the desert sun. It cannot be good and evil any more than night and day.

"Above it all, through it all, there is balance. There cannot be light without darkness, drought without flood, life without death. The Force will always bring balance, regardless of the actions of a few beings within it."

Rey hesitated. The words sounded right – this is how the Force felt when she first connected to it on the cliff on Ahch-To. But doubt coursed through her still. If this theory of the Unifying Force was true then why were its followers marginalized by the Jedi Order?

"You wonder how this could be true if the Jedi Order – the symbol of balance and peace throughout the universe – did not practice it." Rhona seemed unperturbed by Rey's persistent doubt. She smiled knowingly, as if this question had been asked of her before. A moment later, Rhona's eyes darkened and she looked at the ground. "The truth is, Rey, the idea of the Unifying Force did one thing the Jedi Order could not abide: it took away their power."

Rey felt the surprise pass over her face before it settled in her heart. Power had always been the purview of the Dark side, whether the Sith or the First Order.

"The Jedi became the symbol of peace and order in the galaxy for one reason: they were the true Good, the Light, and they promised those things wordlessly to all of the worlds they entered. Their laws, their Code, meant something to the people only because the Jedi represented the Light and all of the resultant rewards. If the Jedi Order instead promised simply balance, they would have been treated as any other religious order: powerless to those who did not believe."

The legends of the Jedi heroes that had filled her head as a child flashed before her. Those stories had kept her alive in a time where there was nothing but uncertainty – she had hoarded the snatches of stories told on the streets when she was a child, treasuring the legends more than she did the scraps of food. When she shut her eyes in the sandy waste of Jakku, the stories of Obi-Wan, Qui-Gon, Yoda, and Luke, of their selfless deeds and reckless heroism, had carried her to sleep like a lullaby.

"The Jedi were good, Rey, but they were not the only good. Jedi heroes brought greatness and peace in their wake. I do not want to diminish their good deeds in anyone's mind. But the fact remains that the belief in the Force having a Light side and a Dark side was a belief that benefitted the Jedi Order, and the Jedi Order would not allow that belief to fade."

Rey's mind churned as she considered this Jedi apparition's words. Even if this were true, even if the Light and the Dark did not exist as separate entities, how did it change what they knew to be true? The First Order, and the Sith before them, practiced evil. The Jedi practiced good.

Rey turned her piercing eyes, laser-sharp, to the spirit before her. "What does all of this matter? The Jedi Order is gone. There is only me and the First Order. The Light does not grant me this power in the Order's stead."

"What you fail to understand is that the Force, Rey, corrects itself. What you see before you, the insurmountable battle between the Resistance and the First Order, is irrelevant to the Force. It doesn't matter who wins this battle because in the end, the Force will bring balance.

"We are only small beings in a massive tapestry. If we all died tomorrow, the universe and the Force would go on."

Anger rose in Rey's chest. Why did Luke send this Jedi to torture her? Why did he think it important to point out her insignificance just as she needed to feel the strongest? She trembled with frustration, sweat beading on her forehead. The hand that held her lightsaber was frozen, and her other hand clenched into a fist.

"Why are you here?" Rey asked sharply. "To discourage me? To tell me that ultimately we lose this war and that I shouldn't care?"

"No." The Jedi woman's voice remained calm and even. Her tone was soothing, but Rey found it grating as she fought to understand what good came of this lecture. "I am here to remind you that Jedi are just beings struggling to understand something much greater than them. When you feel lost and alone, you are feeling as thousands of Jedi felt before you, and this does not mean you are tempted to the Dark.

"More than that," she said, as Rey's eyes, focused but softer, met hers, "I want to remind you that Ben Solo feels it too. He has lost his way in the labyrinth of Light and Dark, but the Unifying Force is a path in the darkness. It is easier to pick a side when there is only black and white; it is much more difficult when there are a thousand shades of grey."

Rey remembered moments where Ben Solo had looked at her through the eyes of Kylo Ren. She had recognized hurt, confusion, abandonment, and hope in his eyes, especially in the moment on Ahch-To where he had taken her hand. The Force had bridged thousands of miles to bring them together in that moment; she had thought it intended to turn his Dark into Light, but had it simply turned them both more grey?

"There is one more thing, Rey, that I have to tell you." Rhona smiled to herself, her eyes looking through the air into a memory. She spoke again, this time to herself. "Obi-Wan always insisted if I followed the Code more closely, I would have sat on the council alongside him… Perhaps he was right."

Rey's brow furrowed in confusion. Rhona's eyes were still a million miles away, looking into the past.

Suddenly, her eyes flashed to Rey's, meeting them in a magnetic gaze. "Love is not a path to the Dark, Rey. The Jedi Code forbids romantic love, and even the love of family, insisting that love creates the fear of loss, that it creates hate and anger and destruction.

"It doesn't have to.

"You can feel love in a thousand different ways, but, ultimately, it comes down to what you do with it. You can either look into the eyes of the person you love and feel the crushing fear of loss and the hatred of anyone who would take that love away from you, or you can feel the joy of that connection and the compassion that only comes from wanting everyone else in the galaxy to feel what you feel in that moment.

"You can decide to act in a way that prevents _you_ from losing that love, or you can act in a way that brings the opportunity to feel love to others. In loss, you can act to bring revenge or you can act to bring hope that loss does not have to happen again.

"Love can be the strongest path to the Light, if the Light is what you believe, Rey. After all, love is what redeemed Vader."

Rey's mouth was dry. Her heart swelled with the vision of Ben's soft eyes across from her in the hut on Ahch-To. Her heart reached out in the morning light as her hand had reached out to meet his. For a heavy moment, she was in that hut again, the fire crackling between them, the air heavy with salt and sea. Time was suspended as their fingers grew eternally closer but never touched. Each beat of her heart was thunderous in her ears.

She blinked, and the vision faded. Time returned in a rush, and she felt her lightsaber fall from her fingers. Her eyes flew back to where, a moment before, the apparition of the Jedi Master had stood before her. Suddenly, there was nothing except a sapling swaying in the gentle breeze. The only sounds were the gentle chirping of birds, and the creaking of branches above her.

She had almost convinced herself the Jedi apparition had been a figment of her imagination when an ephemeral voice whispered in the wind:

 _May the Force be with you, Rey. And good luck._


	4. Chapter 4

For once, a calm sleep had taken her. For days she had been kept awake arguing with herself – was there a Light side and a Dark side, or was that supposed Jedi Master…apparition…thing right? Was love a path to good when the fear of loss could be kept at bay?

She had taken her sleeping roll away from the others, as her tossing and turning had drawn questions and concerns, especially from Finn. He had a particular way of making her feel guilty for every bit of discomfort she felt, because he acted as if he could feel it, too. Every time he looked at her with that uneasy expression and asked her what was wrong in that overly gentle voice, she felt sickened by her own conflict. She didn't want to be a source of pain for him as Ben Solo was for her.

Now, she was tucked up in a small room against the warmth of a power generator. Since leaving Jakku, she was always cold; a byproduct of being raised in the unforgiving desert sun, she supposed. It was dark, and away from pitying eyes. The background whirring of the generator helped drown her restless thoughts, and when she closed her eyes, she summoned the Jedi legends like she used to as a child on Jakku. The Jedi heroes comforted her like family, and soon sleep took her, deep and dreamless.

Somewhere, as if in the distance, she heard the buzz of a lightsaber being ignited. Strangely, the sound seemed comfortable to her, as if she had expected to hear it. It seemed to draw closer and yet still seemed a million miles away, or hidden beyond a veil of thick fog.

The hairs on the back of her neck prickled, and time passed slowly in a thick haze. She realized she could feel the energy of a saber blade at her back and adrenaline shot through her like a bolt. She turned wildly, her eyelids snapping open to a green glow in the dark. Everything else was black, pitch dark, save the figure standing there, blade poised for attack, bathed in a quivering lime glow.

Luke stared at her like a statue, his eyes burning with fear and doubt and anger.

Time seemed to resume as she blindly grasped for her lightsaber, just beyond her reach. She blinked and around her was the generator room, with its gentle blue haze, and she was alone.

Or was she? In the same moment she realized that she had awoken from a dream she felt the palpable presence that only accompanied her Force connections with Kylo Ren.

She turned slowly, a single burning tear trickling down her cheek. Residual emotion from the dream bubbled inside her.

She was not surprised to see him before her. He had felt the connection too and had forcibly steadied his face, but his eyes betrayed the hurt and fear inside him. His hair was disheveled and his clothes unkempt. He had just woken from sleep.

Instantly, she realized: it was his dream she had seen through his eyes. Did he know what she has seen?

"What are you doing here?" he asked aloud, his voice deep and dulcet. He seemed to be asking himself, and the universe, as much as he was asking her.

She struggled to put enough words together to formulate a response. Every time she met his dark, deep gaze, she felt like she was falling into it. Moments flashed before her: the look he gave her just before he killed Snoke, the look he gave her when his voice had trembled, when he was pleading with her to join him. Lately, a new moment had taken a position of prominence: the look he gave her when she left him on the floor of the closet. It was enough to make the most coherent person dizzy and unsure.

When she finally spoke, her voice was tremulous, unsure: "I saw him. Luke."

Distrust, fear, and even anger, flashed through his expressive eyes like lightning. In an instant, they faded to leave his eyes cold and closed off to her, like they had been the first time she had seen them, in the interrogation room. He had not been so guarded against her since their first Force connection. A motionless shiver passed through her, as if through her constitution rather than her body.

"You have seen what I see every night," he said, without emotion. "Every time my mind passes from conscious to asleep, it brings back that dream."

Luke's countenance, young and gruff and bathed in sickly green light, appeared to her again. She looked into his eyes and felt the fear, the distrust, and the anger anew. Luke looked at her as if she were less than human, as if she were incomprehensibly repulsive to him, and she had never felt so discarded in her life.

Except she had, she realized at once. Luke faded, only to be replaced by the sandy wastes of Jakku.

Her parents had never looked at her like Luke had looked at Ben Solo. Her parents had never raised a weapon to her. But they had discarded her, like something subhuman. Never had she been able to remember the moment they had abandoned her, until that moment in Snoke's chamber, when Ben had forced her to think clearly. She, like him, had learned to cope with the rejection.

Their coping mechanisms were intensely different, she thought. She buried the memories, compartmentalized so she couldn't be hurt by them anymore. He lashed out, violently, unpredictably, thinking if maybe he could extinguish the things that hurt him, the sting would fade.

His expression was still cold when he spoke again. "You looked at me like that. In the forest on Starkiller Base. Onboard the Destroyer. And again the first time the Force connected us.

"You don't look at me like that anymore."

Kylo Ren, the new Supreme Leader of the First Order, rarely sounded unsure or questioning. Ben Solo, Rey had learned, was different. Unsteadiness colored his voice, even as he kept the wall up in his eyes. He scanned her face closely, as if memorizing every detail. The tear trail on her face felt like a weakness underneath his intense scrutiny.

"Maybe we're the same," she murmured. The thought had passed her lips before she had registered it. Ben Solo had compartmentalized, too. Instead of locking away his memories, he had created Kylo Ren to distance himself from it. Ben Solo was hurt and discarded, Ben Solo was feared to the point of hatred. Kylo Ren was the wall erected against those emotions.

He sat up in his bed, leaning over towards her. His eyes had shifted, become earnest and interested, and his gaze pierced her like a knife. She held her breath unconsciously, waiting to hear him speak. She could feel the words forming in his mind, hanging unspoken in the air –

The Force connection broke. She was suddenly alone again, and the hum of the generator was deafening. She reminded herself to breathe.

Her mind raced. How could they be the same and yet so different? Never had she before so clearly understood his makeup, never had she before been so sympathetic to his fall to the Dark.

And yet, she had managed abandonment much more literal and final than his without turning to murder. Han Solo's death replayed in her mind, and she was overwhelmed with discordant thoughts. Bile and nausea rose in her throat, and she fought against the urge to be ill.

 _There is no emotion, there is peace.  
There is no ignorance, there is knowledge.  
There is no passion, there is serenity.  
There is no chaos, there is harmony.  
There is no death, there is the Force._

Unbidden, the Jedi Code washed through her mind. Instantly, her stomach calmed and her heart settled into a slower rhythm. Over and over she recited it in her thoughts, until her breathing was slow and even.

Deafening silence muffled her thoughts as she stiffly laid back in her bedroll. She opened her palm, and her lightsaber flew to it instantly. The metal was icy against her skin.

She drew it to her chest, wondering. If she would have been able to kill someone to bring back her parents, in the moments where she felt the most alone, would she have? If someone had taken her when she was the most vulnerable, the most hurt, like Snoke had taken Ben… If someone had handed her a weapon and told her that her agony would birth strength and greatness, and, most importantly, the promise of never feeling that heartbreak again, would she have struck as they directed? More troublingly, would she have learned to do it when she wasn't directed?

Master Rhona's words ran through her mind this time, instead of the Code. _It is easier to make a decision when the only choices are black and white; it is much harder then there are a thousand shades of grey_.

Could she imagine herself murdering someone in cold blood? No. That was black and white – the choices: kill or not kill, were obvious in their morality.

Could she imagine herself killing someone in the name of the Resistance, even if it was someone she was close to, if the correct motivation was behind it? She was surprised to admit that it depended, on who, and why, and what was to be gained.

Rey would have killed General Organa herself, if she could have the certainty that it would end the war and bring a permanent peace and prosperity to the galaxy. Those were her conditions. That was one of her shades of grey.

Of course, Ben Solo's warped transition could not be explained in such a neat, selfless package. His motivations were more selfish, less universal, than permanent peace and prosperity. But then again, his fall was not so black and white. There was Snoke, and hurt, and abandonment, and fear – shades of grey.

An animal would chew its own leg off to free itself from a trap. Animals in some climates were known to abandon or murder one of their own young to save the others. An animal or a droid could be trained to do evil at their master's bidding. Desperation, hunger, and coercion were powerful motivators, and this was before emotion and sentience were factored in.

She couldn't condone the actions that warped Ben Solo into Kylo Ren, and she couldn't condone the actions he had since taken, but she was starting to understand, at least, what might had left him vulnerable to his fall. The idea of inherent evil, she was beginning to realize, was the creation of humans and other sentient beings – a coping mechanism, against the reality of the shades of grey within themselves. It was a way to distance themselves from the others of their kind who had taken action in desperation or anger or hatred – they were acts of Inherent Evil and if one was not Inherently Evil (and who sees themselves that way?) they were not capable of them.

Reality was much different. For all their bravado and self-importance, humans and the other sentient beings in the galaxy were little more than animals trained by their surroundings and upbringing to act a certain way.

It was easy on a grand scale to weigh right against wrong, but Rey had come from a scavenger's life on an unforgiving planet. She had engaged in behaviors most would say were wrong – theft and violence perhaps the most obvious. In the black and white sense, her actions were wrong. In Rey's fight to survive, they were necessary.

Rationalizing Ben Solo/Kylo Ren was unproductive at best, but, Rey decided, that also precluded ultimate judgment against him. Vader was ruthless and relentless, and he was redeemed in his love for his children. If Luke had only seen the apparent evil standing before him, the Rebellion would have failed.

Rey turned over, her thoughts finally quieting enough to grant her some hope for sleep. Another kind of hope filled her heart, reluctantly but warmly; she hoped for the chance to free Ben Solo from Kylo Ren forever, if only to prove to herself that even on the darkest of days, all was not as bleak as it seemed.


	5. Chapter 5

Kylo Ren did not sleep that night. After their Force-bond had faded, he stared at the place she seemingly appeared for an eternity, considering. _Maybe we are the same_. Her words echoed over and over in his mind, but what did they mean?

He was perturbed she had seen his recurring nightmare. He had taken such lengths to shut his waking mind from emotion, but in that twilight state between wake and sleep, the walls fell away. It was bad enough that he had to see those things, to feel that weakness again, but for her…

The idea of Rey, his enemy or future partner in the Force, knowing his weaknesses cut him to his core. Constantly, when Snoke had still been his tutor, he had been quick to find and ferret out his soft spots, his weaknesses. Supposedly, killing his father was going to rid himself of his deepest, softest vein.

It hadn't.

Luke's betrayal of him replayed in his nightmares because it was the shallowest wound. The other betrayals cut far deeper, and he had buried them likewise.

Kylo Ren was emotionally separated from the boy Ben Solo, even as the factual memories sprung to life, unbidden. From the first moment he could remember, his father had treated him as slightly _other_. It was subtle at first, and for years he didn't pick up on it. Instead, the bonding of father with son outweighed the fissure between them, and they became a happy family. Ben always craved his father's approval and attention.

There were so many happy moments. Kylo Ren had lost those, too. The times he had been strapped into the cockpit of the Millennium Falcon, or the times he had crawled into Chewbacca's lap and poked at the controls.

He swallowed forcefully, rising from his bed. He stood at the small, black desk in the corner and leaned both his arms on it, still staring blankly ahead.

The rest appeared in broken snatches, swirling around in his head like a vortex.

 _I felt it again. The vision._ It was Leia, in a stark whisper, where she thought Ben would not overhear her. Her brow was furrowed in concern.

Han had his back turned to Ben, so he could not see his face. Instead he heard the terseness in his father's voice. _You keep having this vision, of Ben turning to the Dark side. He's just a teenager, Leia. This is what they are. They hate their parents for a few years, and then they turn around._

 _I think we should have Luke train him_ , Leia answered, pleading in her tone. _He will know what to do. After all, with, well, you know…_

 _I'm not sending my son off to train in some hokey religion, Leia. Let me take him on the Falcon. We'll only be gone for a few weeks, and it'll do the kid some good to get away from all of these politics._

One of Ren's hands clenched into a fist. That memory faded. Another rose instead.

 _I can't stay anymore. I don't belong here, growing roots, Leia._ Han's voice was tired and earnest and mad.

There were tears in Leia's eyes. Ben was standing in the doorway, a silhouette in the background of their argument, unseen.

 _I am only doing what I think is right, for Ben. We have to save him, if we can,_ she said. Despite the tears, her voice was strong, without the slightest quaver.

Han hesitated before the ramp of the Millennium Falcon. _Yeah, by packing him up and sending him with Luke, where he will become a Jedi or whatever_. Han turned his head with a sharp sigh. _Where he will learn to be too good for his father, the smuggler_.

Leia's expression was firm with resolve, even as tears slowly rolled down her face. _Snoke is trying to take him from us. I won't let that happen._

 _But you will let Luke take him,_ Han countered. Then snidely, just to hurt her, _I don't see the difference_.

By the time Leia had turned away from Han, Ben had slipped through the doorway sight unseen. It had always been the same, since he had first become aware of the Force. His parents were always fighting about how to handle it. He was the wedge that drove them apart.

Han's voice was still barely audible as Ben retreated, tears stinging his eyes. _See you around, Princess_. And the roar of the Falcon's engines signaled his departure.

Kylo Ren squelched that memory, too. Flashes of Snoke took its place. The first step to power, Snoke had always said, was extinguishing emotion. Much of Ren's early training had centered on that: becoming even and emotionless and cold.

Snoke's training had been wrought with contradictions, though. In one breath he was spouting the importance of emotionless countenance, and in the next he was describing how anger and pain and hate brought great power with the Dark side. He had stoked Kylo's pull to both the Dark and the Light equally, prescribing readings and teachings by both the Jedi and the Sith. One day, they would practice with the saber as a Jedi would fight, the next as a Sith. Ren's power with the Light made him more powerful to the Dark, Snoke would say.

He had been drawn to Snoke because he was conflicted, and Snoke had ignited that conflict into a roaring flame.

Kylo Ren prided himself on even countenance. That's what made his violent outbursts even worse. The rage would grip him, like it had the first time under Snoke's direction, and he would act before his mind could regain control. He often felt like he was coming to consciousness after the episodes faded, and he felt surprised to be holding his lightsaber with destruction around him.

He had felt similarly after he had killed his father, he reflected, looking down at his fist. He had "come to," holding his lightsaber, as Han Solo tumbled to his demise. Numb and surprised, he stared dumbly at his own hand, even as he fell to his knees.

Killing Han Solo had not brought him the strength Snoke promised. It had simply brought him pain and guilt he had to bury with the rest of his emotions.

He had been unable to kill Leia Organa, he reflected. Perhaps his emotions were not as buried as he had thought.

A trail of blood laid in his wake. Even if he were to decide to abandon Kylo Ren, could there be any redeeming Ben Solo? It was always at this juncture that he concluded there was no point in conflict – he had already eradicated his chance of being accepted in the eyes of the Light. He might as well lean into his chosen path, now that he had gotten so deep in the thick of it.

Expect, he thought grimly, for Rey.

He hated her, or so he had thought. From the moment she turned his mind probe back on him and felt his fear and doubt, he had begun to loathe her and her untrained, raw power that rivaled his own, honed, practiced craft. He would have struck her down, that night on Starkiller Base, if he had just been a little bit faster, or stronger. He remembered the total immersion of his own rage as he pounded on his blaster wound, using the pain to ignite his fury like it had never been before.

And yet, he failed.

He had never felt as ashamed or mortified as in that moment in Snoke's chamber when he had been reprimanded. A child in a mask, he had been called. A poor mockery of the raw strength of Vader.

Ren glanced at the charred remains of Darth Vader's mask, still in place in its shrine. He wondered what his grandfather had felt in his moment of weakness, a mar on an otherwise perfect record of Dark side at its most powerful. Sentimentality had killed Vader, and the Empire, Snoke warned. In order to succeed where he had failed, to kill all the Jedi, Kylo Ren had to be immune to sentimentality.

He wasn't, and it was the most frustrating of his many personal weaknesses. He had proved it over and over again, in his reaction to his father's death, in his inability to kill his mother, and in every single last failure to kill or turn Rey.

No matter how he tried to banish it, he still felt the pull of the Light.

He buried his face in his hands, locking his fingers in his hair and clenching even as it hurt. That fucking scavenger was going to be the death of Kylo Ren. The Force was making that clearer by the second. Whether or not she was going to kill Ben Solo along with him, was less certain.

The rage pulled at him, like it usually did before an episode seized him. This time, however, it simply pulled enough to make itself felt but did not make him lose control.

He glanced back to the empty wall where Rey had appeared to him in the Force-bond. Her quick, fiery eyes no longer watched him, but they tempered his anger just the same. It was like she was reaching out to him, like she had in the Force-bond once before, and when he felt her fingers touch his, the rage simply vanished.

He sighed. He was becoming weaker, he admonished himself. He tried to summon the fury back, for once feeling that his uncontrollable temper would be a welcome return to his usual power. Instead arose the vision of Rey, writhing in pleasure beneath his touch, whispering his name.

"Ben."

A shiver passed through his spine forcefully. It was a syllable he hated, except when she spoke it. When she spoke it, it was a primal experience. He felt the sound in his gut, as he had never felt anything before. This time, his hands clenched for a different reason, and he took a steadying breath.

A knock on his door startled him, and it took him a second to stabilize his face. He was never startled. What had gotten into him?

"Supreme Leader," came Hux's voice through the door, "I have important news."

Kylo Ren adjusted his clothing, for the first time having to consciously make sure his appearance was immaculate. This girl, this smuggler, was becoming too much of a liability. Something had to be done. He smoothed his hair before opening the door telekinetically.

General Hux took a hesitant half-step through the door, clearly unsettled by the news he had to deliver. "There is a Resistance attack, on our supply squadrons."

Kylo Ren did not allow an outward reaction to the news. The Resistance attacked their smaller squadrons occasionally, more as a nuisance than anything else. They liked to remind the First Order that they were still there, even if they were not in the middle of taking out something as big as Starkiller Base.

"General Hux, I should hope there is something more. It is more than within your purview to handle skirmishes with Resistance fighters."

Hux bristled visibly at Ren's words. General Armitage Hux made no secret of his jealousy and distrust of Kylo Ren, even now that the strange Force-sensitive man was Supreme Leader of the First Order. Hux's buttons were easy to press, and Kylo Ren never passed up an opportunity to remind him so.

"Yes, Supreme Leader. You have ordered us to deliver immediately any information regarding the Jedi, Rey." Hux's eyes flashed triumphant, even as Kylo Ren's heart skipped a beat. "We believe she is among the ranks of Resistance fighters."

Kylo Ren did not hesitate, even as every muscle in his body tensed. "Ready my TIE fighter." His voice and expression were piercing, and Hux visibly suppressed a flinch. "The girl is mine."


	6. Chapter 6

It started as a very ordinary day. The sun rose with no splendor, just a quiet yellow-blue dawn. The sky was still and quiet, a few clouds scattered across. A mild breeze rustled the trees, and the temperature was mild.

A flurry of activity on the ground betrayed the gravity of the day. Everywhere, Resistance members scrambled to finish maintenance on X-wing ships, to pack supplies, to ready for the launch. The pilots had donned their flight suits, and dotted the crowd in their bright orange.

Rey paced the outside of a singular X-wing, her hand running absently along the cool metal. A mechanic worked underneath the belly of the fighter, making a long list of pre-flight checks. Rey was making her own, not because she didn't trust the mechanic, but because the technology behind ships was her first love.

A series of chirps behind her distracted Rey from her task. She turned, and squatted down to address the droid who had come up to her.

"Hello, R4-G9. My name is Rey. Nice to meet you."

The droid beeped in response, and Rey smiled. Another couple of beeps, and the smile turned to a frown.

"No I haven't flown a T-70 X-wing before, but mind your manners, I'm a great pilot!" She crossed her arms, and the droid whistled something that was distinctly not an apology.

"Oh, you think so! Well, I'll tell you that not only am I a capable pilot but I'm also a Jedi, thank you very much."

The droid whistled quietly, and Rey dropped to look at it in its photoreceptor. "Your first master was a Jedi?" she asked. "Who?"

The droid answered softly, and Rey sat back on her heels, bringing her hand to cover her mouth. "Your master was Obi-Wan Kenobi?"

R4-G9 beeped its agreement, and then a quick chatter of beeps. "I'm honored you are my co-pilot today, G9."

A final quick beep-whistle from the droid ended the conversation, and R4-G9 engaged the droid loading system to lock into the copilot position. Rey looked up at the fighter wonderingly. She was relieved to be able to pilot again, as she had wondered if they would consider her too indispensable to fly on such a high-risk mission. Instead, General Organa had suggested it straight out, asserting that the Jedi had always made extremely talented pilots, as the Force gave them an exceptional reaction time and targeting skills far beyond that of even the most sophisticated computer system.

Rey had been assigned to fly in Poe Dameron's squadron, where she would defend the others as they made their primary attacks on the supply ships. Poe had been enthusiastic and kind to her about the assignment. The first thing he said to her when he heard the news was, "Heard I've got you on my team, and I couldn't be more thrilled. I saw you at the helm of the Millennium Falcon, and I could use another pilot as talented as you."

He had taken her under his wing, so-to-speak, to get her up-to-speed on the X-wing fighter. They had a single functioning simulator on the Resistance base, and he logged many hours with her teaching her the most advanced tricks and quirks associated with the T-70. He had even taken her up on a couple of quick flights to practice the hardest maneuvers, he in a shiny new T-85 that had been ordered to replace his beloved black T-70, and her in the ship she was going to pilot.

"We're reforming the Black Squadron," he had told her when they landed from one of their flights. "You've got raw talent, Rey, and daring. You'll fit right in."

Rey was unsure about the orange flight suit, so she donned it over her usual tunic and trousers, with her lightsaber at her hip. No part of this mission predicted battle outside of ships, but she didn't want to be caught in the bulky suit if the situation arose.

"All teams, load up." Poe's voice crackled through the mic set she wore, signaling their impending departure. She took a deep breath of the fresh, non-artificial atmosphere, and then secured her helmet onto her head. The symbol of the Resistance was emblazoned on the side of the helmet in black.

G9 chirped to her in Binary through the speaker as she climbed the ladder. "Yep, warm us up," she answered, sliding into the cockpit as the engines began to rumble.

"All squadrons, this is General Organa." Rey adjusted the helmet so that her communication system was comfortable and clear. "There is only one objective today, and that is to cripple the supply shipment to the First Order. This is not a time for deviations or heroics." Rey glanced over to Poe, in the cockpit of his T-85. He glanced at her and they made knowing eye contact. Rey knew those words were meant specifically for him and for her.

"Protect each other out there, and remember your objective," Leia said firmly. "May the Force be with you."

The rumble of the 22 X-wing fighters seemed the physical manifestation of the adrenaline of the 22 pilots. Rey did not feel nervous, exactly, but she felt the energy that inevitably preceded a high-stakes fight. The mechanics started slamming shut the hatches on their fighters, running off the pavement and signaling the go-ahead to their pilots.

"All teams, prepare for takeoff," Poe ordered, pulling his canopy down to lock in place.

Rey followed suit, as did the other pilots. Slowly, their astromech copilots began to increase the engine speeds.

"Squadrons, this is Black Leader, your commander for today's mission. All squadrons, report in."

Rey switched her comm system to the Black Squadron channel as she started her flight check. Her instrument panel started to come to life before her as she flicked switches and activated systems. G9's communications scrolled on a screen before her in text, assuring her of the functionality of each system as they went through their choreographed checks.

"Black Squadron, this is Black Leader," Poe started the sound-off.

"Black Two, standing by," said Jessika Pava, a member of the previous Black Squadron, and one of Poe's close friends.

"Black Three, standing by."

"Black Four, standing by."

"Black Five, standing by."

"Black Six, standing by," Rey said, finishing her last check and giving Poe a visible thumbs-up.

She switched the comm back to the general channel as her hands fell back to the flight stick.

"All Leaders, report in. Black Squadron, standing by."

"Red Squadron, standing by," Lieutenant Commander Nein Nunb answered.

"Blue Squadron, standing by," Captain Temmin Wexley answered.

"All teams, you are cleared for take-off."

"Alight, G9" Rey said, as she switched the fighter to flight mode, "We're cleared for take-off."

G9 confirmed all systems operational, and they engaged the take-off sequence as 22 X-wing fighters lifted into the early morning air.

* * *

Rey prepared to drop out of Hyperspace, and every fiber of her was on-edge. They had done their best to keep their target a secret to the First Order, but there remained the distinct possibility that they would drop out of light speed to a fleet of fighters, and even Star Destroyers, waiting to take them out.

"Black Squad, prepare for exiting light speed," ordered Poe, his voice betraying just a hint of the thrill he felt to be amongst the stars again. "Ready to pair up?"

"Ready, Black Leader," affirmed Pava. The other pilots followed suit.

R4-G9 signaled the countdown for Hyperspace exit, and Rey held her breath. 30 seconds, 29, 28, 27… She closed her eyes for just a moment, trying to reach out with the Force to avoid any surprises. She felt nothing unusual. 15 seconds, 14, 13…

Her speed dropped, and Rey's stomach dropped with it. There was always the shortest feeling of freefall in the pit of her stomach when exiting light speed, and like a reflex, it triggered her to switch from autopilot to manual mode.

Black Squadron was the last to arrive at the scene by a few seconds. Rey looked out the transparisteel of her canopy at the space she had entered, taking inventory. There were 21 fighters in the space surrounding her, and one small, cloudy planet.

Rey took her position as Poe's wingman, and the remainder of her squadron paired off similarly. They were poised in defense of the rest of the fighters, ready to draw and return heavy fire.

For a long moment, there was no activity. The fighters hovered in place, in profound silence.

"All teams, I have targets approaching," said Wexley.

"8 targets at 2-'o-clock," Blue Three reported.

"Attack teams, engage," Poe ordered, and the battle began.

At first, the Black Squadron just watched as blaster fire rained down through the darkness of space. Red-orange bursts hurled at the supply squadron as they started to scatter. The shields of the supply ships flashed blue-white with each hit.

"Shields are weak rear and belly," advised an unknown squad member over the general channel.

Rey breathed, her hands tense on the controls. She watched Poe's fighter as they hovered, still, the only calm in the now fiery sky. The expectation of trouble filled her chest, and she channeled the Force with every breath, waiting…

"We've got company," she warned, suddenly. "Bandits at 30 degrees, approaching hot."

"Black Six, do you have visual?" asked Black Four. Rey could feel his finger hovering over the trigger, ready.

"Negative, Black Four," she answered, her eyes trained on the spot in which she knew would soon appear a group of First Order fighters. "But give it a minute."

Rey watched in her peripheral vision as one of the supply ships came apart in silent fury. Orange flames burst out, and then the ship collapsed inward in a violent implosion. The flames ended like a switch had been flipped, and all that was left of the supply ship was glinting metallic debris, floating lazily in the zero-gravity.

"First target dispatched," said a member of the attack group. Rey did not immediately recognize the voice.

"We've got TIE fighters incoming, Black Leader." This time, Rey recognized Nunb's voice. "Coming from planetside."

"Roger that, Red Leader," Poe confirmed. "Black Squadron, engage!"

Instantly, the tension faded from Rey's body. As she guided the ship gracefully up and over the raging battle, just at Poe's right wing, she felt her pilot's instinct and the Force running through her. More natural than her own beating heart, it felt like the sky was coursing through her veins. The X-wing was a part of her like her lightsaber was an extension of her arm; flying felt more natural to her than even walking.

"All right, Black Squad," Poe said, as six Empire-era TIE fighters sped towards them in the field of stars. "Let's show 'em what we've got."


	7. Chapter 7

The X-wings floated together as if in a choreographed dance, forming up in pairs to meet the First Order pilots. The battle raged on behind them in dramatic silence. Blaster fire and debris peppered the battlefield, and yet the only sound was in Rey's cockpit, from her X-wing and the comm system.

Rey was positioned at the right wing of Poe Dameron, acting as his trusted wingman, as a group of TIE fighters approached. In the void of space, they lacked their signature howling roar as they approached, full speed.

Poe positioned them on a pair of the six approaching fighters. Breathing deeply, Rey felt the Force flowing through her, a sixth sense that allowed her to ready her attack before they were even in firing range. The communications of the attack teams faded to nothingness in Rey's ears as she planned her shot.

"I've got the one on the left," Poe said to her.

"Copy," she answered, veering off just enough to the right to engage the fighter at her position.

"These older models don't have deflectors," Poe said, addressing the group. "A carefully placed shot will take them down."

The pilots voiced their agreement, but Rey had focused on her target. She began her own mental countdown to firing range, the Force locking on more precisely than any computer. 5 seconds, 4, 3…

She fired her blaster, aiming carefully at one of the ship's ion engines. The energy burst cut through space for both a second and an eternity before it hit the TIE fighter, blowing it to powder in a fiery mass.

As the debris from the destroyed fighter bounced off her shields, she spun to resume her wing position at Poe's side. Two of the TIE fighters had survived the initial attack, and careened wildly up above the squadron, firing haphazardly at the X-wings.

Poe curved sharply to meet them, and Rey remained at his side as if they were tethered together. A simultaneous blast from each of their ships sent the TIEs into each other, where they collided and came apart.

The immediate danger handled, the Black Squadron came around to fly past the attack squads. Another supply ship had been destroyed, and Rey noticed damage to two of the X-wings where large debris had overwhelmed their deflector shields.

"Red Two, Blue Four, disengage and return-to-base," Poe ordered. He had seen the damaged ships too. "There is no sense in risking your lives with damaged shields."

"Copy, Black Leader," both pilots answered. In a moment, each ship activated their hyperdrive and vanished.

Dread hit Rey like a blow to the gut. "More incoming," she announced. "Star Destroyer, about to drop out of Hyperspace."

Her statement was met with a longer pause. "All teams," Poe announced. "Incoming Destroyer."

Rey watched the giant, angular ship appear in the space before them as if by magic. Almost as quickly, a squad of new-generation TIE fighters spilled out of both sides, approaching fast.

The first blast from the Destroyer reached them before any of the fighters. Rey could see its path a second before it flew.

"Red Five: MOVE!" she said.

But it was too late. The blaster fire cut through the X-wing jet like it was made of paper. For a moment, to Rey, the battle raged in slow motion, and she watched the energy tear through the ship in red fissures.

"Now they're pissing me off," Poe said just to Rey. Then, to everyone, "Black Squadron, let's take care of those fighters!"

The pilots of the Black Squadron flew so nimbly they could make six small fighters feel like 20. They zipped through the curtain of TIE fighters, flying wild, erratic paths to confuse their targeting computers. They fired as precisely as they could, but their flight path also confused their own systems. The result was a chaotic cloud of blaster fire and engines and debris. It was nearly impossible to tell which shots came from the First Order ships, and which from the Black Squadron.

Overhead, with lumbering rhythm, larger blasts from the Star Destroyer cut into the clash between X-wing and supply ship. The clumsy guns couldn't aim well enough to hit only the Resistance fighters, and fire took out one of the remaining supply ships as well as two more X-wings.

The newer TIE fighters were much more robust than their older counterparts, and it took more persistent fire to take one down. Nevertheless, Rey and her companions were steadily decreasing the number of fighters in the onslaught. Even more successfully, they were drawing the fight and the smaller fire away from the attack squadrons as their erratic paths led steadily away from the ongoing attack.

Suddenly, only two supply ships remained. The X-wings were faring better, but their numbers were dwindling as well. The Star Destroyer continued to draw nearer, and their more accurate close-range weapons were starting to come online.

Poe seemed to sense it too. Before she could suggest a change in strategy, his voice came to life in her helmet. "Black Six and I are going to make a run at the Destroyer. The rest of you, hold off these fighters!"

Rey snapped to her wingman position as Poe tore off from the cloud of TIE fighters and blaster fire. Like an arrow, they shot towards the Star Destroyer. Their engines were at full throttle; as they approached, they were exposed to all fire, but if they could get close enough, only the surface cannons would be able to hit them. Rey clenched on the throttle with her hand hard. _Faster_ , she willed the ship as the Star Destroyer's cannons began to turn, _faster…_

* * *

"Two approaching light craft, sir," a voice announced. General Hux cared little who it came from. He stared at the viewscreen on the bridge of the Destroyer, watching the supply ships come apart one-by-one. He did not allow his frustration to be visible to the crewmembers.

"Likely trying to make a nuisance run to distract us from firing at their counterparts," Hux said. "Use the mid-range cannons. Take them out."

* * *

Rey felt the cannons turning to lock onto their flight path. They were fastest going straight, but this was also the most predictable path for the computer. If the cannons were online and moved fast enough, they were done for.

"Um, Poe," she said nervously, "We've got to break this path."

She felt the cannons click as they began to engage the target lock. Seconds separated them from certain death.

"Hold steady," Poe said. His engines burned blue in front of her, at maximum power. At this rate, how long did they have before they overheated?

"Poe," she repeated, insistently.

"Hold steady," he repeated. Her knuckles were white on her stick; it took every ounce of willpower to not veer off.

She felt the cannons lock. Another second, and they would fire.

"Now!" Poe said.

In unison, they turned in different directions. The cannon fire passed them as they peeled apart. Rey felt her deflector shields vibrate with the proximity of the energy.

"Wooo!" Poe yelled.

Adrenaline coursed through Rey as they each resumed their hot approach to the Destroyer. This time, the cannons did not swivel to try and follow them. They were too close to the massive ship. Instead, surface guns started to follow them and fire rapid bursts, following their approach almost exactly.

"Get in tight to the ship," Poe said. "Take out the surface cannons, and then we'll try the bigger guns."

Rey quickly flipped her X-wing so she was skimming the Destroyer at close range, like a speeder along the ground. She made quick work of the surface cannons in her path, leaving a trail of explosions in her wake. She could no longer see Poe's jet, but she could sometimes see a flash of light where a cannon fired at him or exploded.

They approached a close-range blaster widely. They both knew to target it without saying it aloud. They approached like two bullets, curving gently towards each other.

Rey reached out with the Force, probing for weakness.

* * *

"Two X-wings have broken from the rest to make a run at the Destroyer, Supreme Leader," Hux's voice reported from the speaker in Kylo Ren's TIE silencer. He sat in the cockpit, parked in the hangar deck, poised for departure. He waited, patiently, for word on the only target he cared about.

Realization struck him like a spear. "She's in one of them. Do not destroy them," he said evenly, and his engines howled as he tore out into space.

* * *

The Force revealed something else to Rey in addition to the weapon's weakest spot. Careening out into space from one of the Destroyer's hangar decks was a singular TIE silencer, one of the more deadly TIE fighters. But it wasn't the ship that was interesting to her. It was its pilot.

"Poe, we've got company," she said, even as she for a moment was transfixed on that TIE pilot, forgetting about the approaching gun. "It's Kylo Ren."

Their ships arced together as the gun came up in front of them. They fired in unison, Poe training on Rey's target as they approached.

Rey could hear the roar of the TIE silencer's engines in her ears as it approached, as if she were in the cockpit instead of its true pilot.

In front of them, their target exploded, shooting energy in a spurt reminiscent of a volcano. They banked in unison, allowing their ships to pass each other smoothly instead of colliding. Their turns allowed them to glimpse the battle now far away. Only one supply ship remained. Several Resistance ships, darting through the debris and chaos like minnows, continued their onslaught.

"All squadrons prepare to disengage," Poe ordered, making a sharp U to fly where he had taken out the surface cannons on his previous pass. "We've more than crippled them. We can leave one ship if we can get the rest of us out alive."

Rey felt Kylo Ren approaching her on her left. The roar of the silencer's engines was deafening.

"All squads make the hyperdrive jump," Poe ordered.

Rey watched as the X-wings began to depart like vanishing stars. Relief washed over her as the only things floating in the field before her were debris from destroyed vessels. The Resistance was soon to be home.

"Alright, Rey, let's get some distance from this hunk of junk so we can get out of here," Poe said, turning to fly out in the direction the cannon they had taken out would fire.

Rey turned to follow, and she felt him before she saw him. In her path, as if he had directly anticipated her next move, was the lone TIE silencer. A single warning shot flew past her cockpit, just barely missing her upper right wing.

"Rey are you following?" Poe asked, as she pivoted in a snap to flee Kylo's ship.

"Negative, Poe, I've got a friend," she said darkly, as Kylo Ren's ship matched her maneuver. He continued to fire, toying with her, as she sped off in a serpentine path.

Poe's ship seemed to flare as he braked to return to cover her. Kylo Ren flew with precision, keeping her tight to the Star Destroyer to prevent her from having a safe jump to Hyperspace. They were two blurs against the black megaship, and they were moving too quickly for Poe to get an accurate shot.

"He's following too close to you," Poe said. "If I shoot I'll just as easily hit you. You've got to make some space."

Rey couldn't deny that Kylo Ren was a talented pilot. She tried to lose him with her trickiest maneuvers, things that would have left an average TIE fighter scraped against the Destroyer's hull. He matched them with ease, and even pressed back at her, keeping her from flying out away from the ship. He continued the barrage of warning fire, alternating between herding her against the ship and reminding her that he could shoot her down any time with blasts that slid against her deflector shields.

Their path was not safe for either of them. They dodged antennas, satellite dishes, machinery as they hugged the ship's hull. Poe followed a little farther out, trying to get a clean shot. All the while, the Star Destroyer continued at high speed towards the battlefield, forcing them to follow.

Rey could feel Ren's moves just a fraction of a second before he made them, but she could not get the upper hand. It was as if he could sense hers, too. And maybe he could. After all, they shared the ability to use the Force with almost equal strength.

"Poe!" she exclaimed, but it was a moment too late, "Watch out!"

Kylo braked suddenly and pivoted, turning fire on Poe. To his credit, Poe Dameron had been poised to respond to Rey's command. A moment before the shot was away, Poe dropped away from the pursuit.

Rey began to wonder if the only way she was going to get out of this was deception via the Force. Was it possible? She didn't know, but she wondered if she could focus all of her thought on going one direction, but instead, at the last second, veer the other. Would this be enough to make him hesitate so that she could break free?

She took a deep breath, clearing her mind as the X-wing hurtled forward. She focused every thought on veering right, down to imagining the turn of the flight stick, the adjustment to the wing position…

She tore left with all her might and she felt his momentary hesitation. Unfortunately, she had also miscalculated his response. Instead of starting to turn right as she anticipated, he had kept his previous course. In the resulting confusion, she was now thrust into his path, and he turned hard to avoid collision and likely death.

His ship swung hard with the sharp turn, continuing to skid sideways with his previous momentum. She continued to see a fraction of a second ahead, and watched as the side panel of his TIE silencer crashed into her wings.

The contact of metal on metal, shield against shield shuddered through her craft. She cut the engines, but not fast enough, and they began to roll and spin wildly, unable to separate.

At some point, the Star Destroyer had reached planetside, she realized. Outside her cockpit streaked glimpses of the planet's orange and teal surface.

She re-engaged her engines, trying to pull away from Kylo Ren's ship, but they were wedged together. She could feel his engines trying to do the same, but instead they were pulling each other to-and-fro in a tug-of-war. And still, they continued spinning, unable to correct their course.

As if her X-wing had suddenly returned to consciousness, alarms and errors began flashing on her instrumentation. A siren blared and the readout from her astrodroid detailed what she already knew:

 _All systems failure eminent, recommend emergency landing._

She had taken damage to her left engine, her left gyroscope, and her leveling devices. In place of those vital systems now stuck a malfunctioning TIE silencer, and as it pulled away from her, it threatened to pull her ship apart.

In a desperate attempt to break free, she turned her ship into him, instead. Another alarm: _High stress left wing, upper and lower_.

A quick glance behind her showed her what she already knew: the Star Destroyer was far away now, as they continued their uncontrolled spin. Debris from both of their ships was indistinguishable from that of the battlefield.

They hurtled into the debris field from the battle, and that's when she knew how this would end. On every surface, collisions rattled her damaged ship. One unlucky hit and this was all over, for both her and Kylo Ren.

Her ears filled with a sound very much like a bloodcurdling scream. A millisecond later, she was thrown against her chest restraints as they hit something like a wall. Her ship shuddered violently, as if in death throes, and she could feel an exponentially crescendoing heat.

They had hit atmosphere.

A moment before she felt it, she realized the increasing g-forces would knock her unconscious. "Poe," she said as black started to fall over her eyes like a curtain, "get out of here. There's no sense in both of us—"

* * *

Poe Dameron waited on the edge of his seat for Rey to finish, even as he knew it wasn't coming. He watched from his cockpit, helpless, as the stuck together ships had fallen into reentry. He watched a moment longer, as pieces started to come apart in bright yellow lumps, burning apart in the atmosphere.

The Star Destroyer had seemingly forgot about him, he realized as it continued to float away without firing. He wondered if the apparent destruction of Kylo Ren had anything to do with that. The two ships continued to fall apart in the atmosphere. Nausea welled in Poe's throat – the ships may have sustained enough damage to make reentry impossible.

BB-8 chirped uncertainly from his position behind Poe. At first, Poe didn't hear it. He felt paralyzed, watching the last Jedi probably burn to death in the atmosphere of some insignificant planet on some insignificant mission. More than that, she was a friend and wingman, and he wrestled the urge to land and search the wreckage. More and more molten lumps pulled off of the married ships, and with every one Poe's despair deepened.

BB-8 chirped again, louder this time. Poe heard him, registered his distress was more proximal than the crash occurring in front of them, and looked down at his readout.

Neither Poe nor BB-8 initiated the calculations and jump to Hyperspace, but, just the same, mere seconds from Rey's plea, Poe's T-85 X-wing enacted a lightspeed return to the Resistance base.


	8. Chapter 8

An acrid smell of smoke hung in the air. Heat burned everywhere. Pain seared in Kylo Ren's head, behind his eyes.

Adrenaline punched him in the gut, and his eyes flew open, he took a deep gasping breath. The crash! Black, thick smoke billowed overhead, blocking out the light or dark – he couldn't tell. Orange sparks climbed the column of smoke, and the sound of fire crackled in his ears.

He attempted to haul himself up to look around and was met with pain. He groaned, steeling himself for another try. He clawed at his chest, removing what remained of his flight restraints. His seat was in pieces underneath him. With another guttural groan, he pulled himself up.

Debris scattered the ground in deep trenches dug by the impact. He recognized parts of his TIE silencer, and of a Resistance X-wing.

Rey.

Strength returned slowly to his limbs, and he climbed unsteadily out of the wreckage. Barely anything remained of his fighter, he realized. Without the auto-eject feature, he wouldn't have survived the crash. He scanned the area, and metal was strewn as far as he could see. The planet's vegetation burned around him.

He spotted a large piece of X-wing about a hundred yards away, and he staggered toward it. He couldn't feel her with the Force. Had she perished in the crash?

He moved deliberately, taking inventory of his own injuries. He had definitely sustained a blow to the head, as the throbbing behind his eyes reminded him constantly. He had too many bruises to count; every part of him hurt. A deep gash cut across his arm, but it only trickled blood. Burns marked his face and back, but they were only superficial.

An explosion rocked the ground, and the shockwave threw him down. He had to get away from here before he was killed. If the ion engines from his ship hadn't yet blown or been thrown clear from the crash, they were more powerful than bombs.

Agonizingly, he clambered to his feet and closed the distance to the twisted hunk of X-wing. He leaned on it to hold his weight, only to recoil instantly from the burning surface.

Rey's cockpit was mangled almost beyond recognition. He recognized her astrodroid, or rather pieces of it, crushed in the crumpled hull. He pried the metal apart as he realized a white helmet, emblazoned with a black Resistance symbol, was also caught in the hull.

No emotion hit him. Unless she had also ejected from the crash, there was no way she could have survived this. More than that, she was nowhere to be found.

He backed away, turning to gain his distance from the crash site before something else blew. He kept expecting emotion to hit him like the shockwave from the crash, but still, he felt nothing. One thought kept repeating in his mind: He hadn't intended to kill her.

At first, of course, he wasn't sure what he had intended. From the moment he was hit with the vision of Kylo Ren's demise at the hands of Rey the Jedi, Rey the scavenger, he had struggled with what to do about it.

Some part of him knew how strong they could be as a united front. If they joined the same team, they could eliminate any obstacle in their path, accomplish any objective. Never before had two beings so strong with the force had an opportunity to unite. If only they could decide on which front they would join forces.

Except, all of these eventualities depended on one thing: both of them being alive.

He moved numbly forward, his head filled with cotton and pain. At some point, he realized he was a safe distance from the wreckage, and he fell to his knees, exhausted.

Unconsciousness chewed at his vision, and his last thought was that, still, Rey's presence was absent from the Force.

* * *

General Armitage Hux watched the view screen dispassionately as the X-wing and the TIE silencer hit atmosphere. Quiet alarms sounded on the bridge as the debris from the supply ships' destruction glanced off the deflector shields of the massive Star Destroyer. The officers worked to silence the alarms as Hux stood, transfixed.

He continued to watch, without reaction, as the wildly spinning pair of ships began to break apart on reentry. The molten yellow-orange glow of the pieces reflected in his eyes.

Despite his outward calm, a million thoughts coursed through his mind. He remembered every encounter he had had with the man named Kylo Ren, every argument, every conflict. He remembered standing before Supreme Leader Snoke as Ren had attempted to humiliate him, and he remembered Ren's apparent failure to prevent the Jedi girl from murdering Snoke in the throne room. How had Ren, if he was so powerful, been subdued as one girl killed the Supreme Leader and all of the Praetorian guards?

Hux suspected a different sequence of events. He felt it in his gut. Whatever had happened in that throne room had not been Rey alone. Ren had allowed Snoke to be killed, or had killed him himself, and he had allowed the girl to escape. Kylo Ren was a traitor of the highest order, of this he was convinced.

However, Ren's power was too acutely deadly to be countered. When Kylo Ren had named himself the new Supreme Leader, rage had coursed through Hux's very soul. Hux had devoted his life and effort to the First Order, had clawed his way up through the ranks to become the leader of the most prestigious parts of the First Order military, only to be upstaged by a boy whose only talent was the ability to choke people with his mind.

The corner of Hux's mouth twitched, and he suppressed a sneer. It was a useful power to someone like Ren. The only reason anyone followed him was because of fear, fear that Ren would snuff them out for a single misstep. Hux led with something more; he inspired power in his subordinates. Not once had he resorted to throwing someone against the wall to assert his dominance, and yet, the ranks of the entire military, save FN-2187, bowed to his will.

His blood boiled with barely contained fury. If only he could prove Ren's treachery, the First Order would fall entirely under his control.

Of course, he thought as he watched Kylo Ren's ship dissolve into molten fireballs in the atmosphere of a truly insignificant planet, he had to prove nothing if the Supreme Leader died in a tragic accident of his own making. Truly, it looked as though he had, as the largest pieces of the two ships became smaller, and smaller…

Hux's voice found utter clarity when the Order rang out across the bridge. "Prepare to jump to Hyperspace. We return to the rest of the fleet."

His face was a calm mask even as a broad smile flashed across his eyes. He felt the gazes of several of the bridge officers on his back. He pivoted on his heels.

"The Supreme Leader is dead." The yellow light of the crashing ships glowed behind his head like a halo. "That title falls next to me."

* * *

When next Kylo Ren returned to consciousness, the smoke had dissipated. He lay face down in dirt, on some unknown planet, and fatigue and pain were heavy in his bones. This time, however, the Force coursed around him strongly, and he began to take inventory of both his immediate and distant surroundings.

He was surprised to find that the Star Destroyer had left the area, and no First Order ships had been dispatched to form a search. Had the crash looked that deadly or had Hux finally taken the opportunity to betray him?

The planet was poorly inhabited, he found. The First Order simply referred to it as Fuel Station 71894, and there were few sentient natives to suggest a more sentimental name. The fuel station, of course, sat many miles away, almost on the opposite side of the planet – or, he considered, planetoid may be a more accurate word. The rock was tiny. An insignificant place for the Supreme Leader of the First Order to die.

Even wildlife was scarce here, he observed. A few avian creatures and small scurrying mammals made homes in the trees nearby. However, larger predators and herbivores seemed to be lacking.

Reluctantly, he forced himself to his feet. Laying in the dirt alone was a path to certain death, and trying to find some semblance of habitation or shelter made death, well, less certain. Once standing, the throbbing in his head returned with a vengeance, and he winced. His face felt sticky, and as he rubbed it with his hand, he realized it was clotted blood.

He realized with bemusement that he had a concussion and an unknown laceration somewhere on his head. He wished idly for a medical kit, knowing well that there was no chance one had survived a crash of that magnitude. It was amazing he had survived a crash of that magnitude, he reminded himself, although surviving the crash was a long way from finding a way off of Fuel Station 71894.

He probed with the Force again, trying to determine a bearing to the nearest habitation. Mostly, he found trees, and birds, but there was an abandoned outpost nearby that may have transportation. He scanned further; wasn't there any life on this damn rock?

Rey.

His heart skipped a beat as he realized there was a definite bend in the force around something nearby. It wasn't as strong as he was used to feeling around her, but, if she had suffered an injury anything like his, she may not be at her full strength. He focused on the spot with all his energy, but could not make the presence coalesce clearer.

He took a deep breath, even as his ribs protested with sharp jolts of pain. It was only about a quarter of a mile away. If he had learned anything from the recent weeks, from the Force-bond, from their battle on the same side in Snoke's throne room, from their connection in the closet, it was that their destinies were intertwined.

He admitted to himself that he had no idea what the outcome would be if he found her alive, but he was sure he had to see with his own eyes.

* * *

Poe Dameron fell out of Hyperspace at the Resistance base with a heavy heart. He made his landing approach robotically, noticing instantly that the other pilots had landed some time ago. He looked out of his cockpit and counted the ships by the hangars below. The number was 17, including himself. They had suffered losses.

He set down gently outside his usual hangar, his eyes fixed on the empty space next to him where, this morning, Rey had been. He felt their knowing eye contact with Leia's admonishing words. No heroics.

Despite the outcome, Poe did not regret their run at the Destroyer. They had bought the Resistance time to cripple the supply shipment. They had completed the mission.

Poe opened his canopy and removed his helmet. He stood to climb out of the T-85 and felt General Organa's eyes on him. Some of the other pilots, especially his friends Pava, Wexley, and Nunb, rushed towards him, crying out their relief that he was still alive, crying out their questions.

What happened?

He tried to smile for their happy faces, but he knew darkness remained in his eyes. He locked his gaze with General Organa, who seemed to know that something had gone wrong. Another figure appeared next to her in the doorway. Finn. Poe swallowed sharply.

Unable to answer the clamoring crowd, Poe handed his helmet to Pava and strode towards Leia. BB-8 followed him silently.

Poe greeted Leia with an outstretched hand. She took it firmly and pulled him into a tight, sharp embrace.

"Commander Dameron," she said as she stepped back, "glad you made it."

Finn voiced her unspoken question as he clapped Poe on the back affectionately. "Where's Rey?"

Poe let out his breath in a sigh that puffed his cheeks. What could he say? "Rey went down on the Fuel Station after a dogfight with Kylo Ren," he stated, deciding there was no better option than the truth.

Finn's eyes were accusatory as he stopped in front of Poe. "You didn't go after her?"

Poe let the agony crease his face. "I was going to, and then my ship jumped to Hyperspace, as if on its own. Rey was telling me to go… I think it was her. I think she activated my Hyperdrive, to send me back here."

General Organa's face remained inscrutable. Finn turned his intense gaze to her instead. "We have to go back for her."

"Finn," Poe said, "Kylo Ren's ship collided with hers. They spiraled out of control, unable to separate. In the chaos, pieces of both of their ships were coming off, and they were hurling straight through the debris from the destroyed supply ships." Poe paused. The words hurt him to speak aloud as much as they would hurt Finn when he heard them.

"Unable to correct course, they hit the atmosphere together. I saw their ships come apart, Finn. No one could live through what I saw."

Despair passed over Finn's face, but his expression settled on grim resolve. "Rey could."

General Organa and Poe shared a glance. Poe continued his grim story. "There was a Star Destroyer there, at the battle. If Rey lived, she is in the custody of the First Order by now."

Leia closed her eyes, a curtain of loss falling over her. The Force hadn't brought her this news. If they had lost the last Jedi, she had been snuffed out silently, like a candle flame.

Still, she considered, what if that meant that she had lived? However unlikely that seemed based on Poe's description of events, she had not felt a disturbance consistent with the death of Rey, nor, even more surprisingly, her son. Every waking moment she felt Kylo Ren's presence in the Force.

Now, she supposed, she didn't feel it. The great Darkness that was ever-present hadn't vanished, but it was no longer a looming presence in the Force. The great Light, Rey, waxed and waned more frequently. Rey was as of yet still a novice with the Force, and there were moments where she was not as clear. In this moment, she felt neither of them with the Force, despite not feeling the fall of their loss, as she had with Luke, and with Han.

That alone brought her hope.

"Rey may yet live," Leia said aloud, "but now is not the time to deploy in search. If Kylo Ren was involved in the crash, Poe is right. Rey is in the custody of the First Order by now, and they will make it known."

"General Organa," said an urgent voice, and the three figures turned. None of them had noticed the Lieutenant until he spoke.

"I am sorry to interrupt," the Lieutenant said, and his apprehension was apparent in his tone. "We have intercepted a First Order transmission, and I think you will want to hear its contents."

Poe, Finn, and Leia looked at each other. Poe had a bad feeling about the transmission's contents.

"Go ahead then, Lieutenant. What is it?"

The Lieutenant looked uneasily into each of their eyes. He swallowed forcefully, realizing that he would have to deliver the news to the three of them personally, rather than to the assembled command. "The transmission stated that Kylo Ren is dead, General Organa. Armitage Hux has claimed the title of Supreme Leader in his stead."

For the first time in her life, Leia distrusted the Force that surrounded her, the Force that refused to deliver to her the news of her son's death. Her normally put-together countenance faltered, and Poe hooked an arm around her shoulders. She welcomed the steadiness. Determinedly, she swallowed the emotions that threatened to consume her. "What about Rey?"


	9. Chapter 9

The walk to the spot he thought Rey might have been was the longest quarter of a mile of his life. Every step ached through his spine and his skull, and every step he thought would have to be his last while he stopped to rest. And yet he continued.

Soon, he saw, in the distance, a transparisteel canopy. That ignited a spark of hope – so she did eject somehow!

He wondered to himself why he was trudging through the landscape to find the Jedi that brought him such pain. Instead, if he let her die, the Jedi would die with her, and he would win.

Something, though, continued to eat at him. He couldn't decide if it was some sort of fascination with her, a selfish desire to gain power, or…some sort of affection…

Affection. That brought with it a spark of annoyance. He had worked very hard in his transformation to Kylo Ren to kill the part of him that felt affection. Of course, he knew he had failed the moment that he and Rey had killed Snoke in the throne room. He remembered the moment Ben Solo's heart had reached out to her as Kylo Ren's arm stretched to her – _Please_.

He reached the canopy, and yet, there was no sign of Rey. He scanned the horizon, with his eyes, with the Force. Motion tickled his vision… There was something, but where?

He realized he was seeing the billowing of a parachute off in the distance, on the horizon. Her seat!

A surge of adrenaline brought strength to his legs. He stumbled forward, quickly. He tried to call out to her, but couldn't find his voice. He scanned the ground for footprints as he ran. He reached out with the Force, trying to feel her presence.

As he neared the wreckage, he saw the silhouette of something. Finding his voice, he called out.

"Rey!"

There was no answer.

Finally, he reached her. She was still strapped in the pilot seat of her fallen plane, and she was very, very still. He fell to his knees, trying to ascertain if she was still alive. He could hear his own blood rushing in his ears. And then, a breath.

His hands trembled as he worked to unfasten her restraints. There was blood matted in her hair. Her fight suit was covered in burns. But she was alive. He stroked her face, trying to wake her, but she remained unconscious. He looked around with wild eyes, realizing that he could not carry her to safety; he was too weak.

An idea came to him in a rush: The parachute.

Struggling again to his feet, he tore off a piece of the parachute. With the help of some nearby sticks, he created a litter of sorts to drag her. Gently, he used his remaining brute strength to pull her onto the makeshift stretcher. If either of them had any hope of getting off this planet alive, he was going to have to find some medical supplies.

* * *

Rey felt like she was drifting. It was a strange feeling, similar to the weightlessness of space, but different just the same. Voices echoed in the emptiness, familiar voices. Rey struggled to reach out to them, to hear them.

Occasionally, words and even phrases would come through to her. She heard Luke: _It's time for the Jedi to end_. Then, she heard Ben: _Let the past die. Kill it if you have to._ She heard Finn: _We came back for you._

None of it made sense to her. It was as if those words, those people were from a different life. And then, Luke's voice rang out clearer than the others: _It is not your time yet, Rey_.

Snatches of a grand battle played out in her mind. There was a planet. There were X-wings. There was a Star Destroyer. In a sickening rush, Rey saw a TIE silencer racing towards her. And then, there was burning yellow light.

Poe. Where was Poe? Her mind struggled to bring back consciousness. There was a crash. She was not dead. She was alive. So why couldn't she wake up?

* * *

Kylo Ren had not felt such joy in a long time. It had come upon him the moment he had seen abandoned First Order outpost on the horizon. His long, agonizing trek was at an end.

The outpost had probably been abandoned less than a year ago, when the First Order decided there were more important places to dedicate their personnel. A generator still stood on the campus, apparently in workable order. A rush of relief washed over him when it roared to life with barely a repair. Enough fuel had been left to run the outpost for days. The amount had been considered too unimportant to dedicate resources to remove. Never in his life had Kylo Ren been so grateful for the First Order's efficiency.

The main access door opened easily. He realized instantly that he knew the layout well. The First Order often recycled plans rather than creating new ones, and he had been to this outpost on several planets before. It was for this reason that he knew there was a medical bay just down the hall to the left. Even if the droid had been taken or was not functional, there were bound to be supplies there.

He stumbled into the room and was not disappointed. Shelves of medical supplies had been left there, untouched. He reached gratefully for an analgesic and injected himself with a trembling hand. Warmth and numbness trickled through him almost instantly, and he sighed.

When he turned to look for wound care kits, he was startled to see the med droid in the corner, deactivated.

His fingers fumbled as he accessed the control panel. He looked at the chip and the display, his thoughts jumbled. Somehow, the droid was still functional, and it turned on with barely a jiggle of the activator switch.

Another surge of strength hit him, and he lifted Rey onto the table. The med droid continued its warm-up sequence, and Ren collapsed into a chair.

The med droid was surprised when it looked at both of them with its photoreceptor. Kylo Ren did not wait for it to speak before he said:

"First the girl, then me."

* * *

Rey opened her eyes to find herself in an unfamiliar medical bay. She was artificially numb under the influence of some medication. Her mind felt sluggish, and things came back to her in pieces.

The battle. The Star Destroyer. The TIE silencer. The crash. Kylo Ren.

She was dizzy as she tried to sit up. A medical droid appeared suddenly at her side.

"Don't try to sit up," it told her softly, in a computerized approximation of a soothing female voice. She ignored it.

She looked over at the bed next to hers. It was occupied by none other than Kylo Ren. She didn't know whether she was surprised or not. The medications made it hard to think.

The med droid's voice had woken him, and he looked at her, slowly sitting up. For a long moment, neither of them said anything. She looked at him, at the scar she had given him, at the bandage on his head, at his burned and tattered clothing. His hair was unkempt, and he had a large gash on his right arm.

"You're alive," she said, unable to think of something else to say.

He laughed shortly, soundlessly. "So are you."

Silence, again. She examined him, his eyes, his lips. She couldn't help but remember where those lips had been, and what they had done, together. She wondered what he was thinking, as he stared at her in return.

"Where are we?" she asked, instead of the thousand other, more accusatory questions that ran through her mind. Was she in the custody of the First Order? Of him?

He shrugged. "Fuel Station 71894. More specifically, we are in First Order Outpost FS-71894.1."

She paused. He had answered her question, she supposed, but he had not given her the answer she wanted. Her hand fell to her hip, where she kept her lightsaber. It was still there, underneath her flight suit. He had to know she had it there. Why had he let her keep it?

He watched her, his eyes falling to her hip when she moved her hand. He looked back into her eyes. "FS-71894.1 was abandoned, maybe a year ago," he said, matter-of-factly. "We are alone."

Alone. Again, her mind flashed to what had happened last time they were alone. She looked away from him as her mind remembered every inch of his skin, every contortion of his face.

"You saved me," she said, as the realization struck her. If she hadn't been taken into custody by the First Order, someone had gotten her from wherever she had crashed to this medical bay. If truly they were alone, it had to have been him.

He looked away from her as well, this time. "Yes."

She stared absently, unseeingly, at the shelf of medical supplies on the wall to her left. What did all of this mean? What did he mean by saving her? Was this another attempt to get her to join him, in his master plan to take over the galaxy?

She changed the subject, unwilling to further explore the answers to those questions. "I suppose the First Order will be here any moment, to save you and arrest me."

She could feel his eyes on her, but she couldn't look back at him again. Her fear would be apparent in her eyes if it wasn't already apparent to him through the Force. His eyes fell away, and her heart skipped a beat.

"The Star Destroyer is gone," he said. "They sent no one to the planet after us. We are really and truly alone."

She looked at him earnestly for a long moment, the wall behind her eyes down. She wanted to see what he was feeling, what he was thinking.

Irritation prickled in his dark brown eyes before he spoke again. "Hux has no doubt declared himself Supreme Leader by now, following my 'death.'"

"My condolences," she said darkly.

Again, he laughed shortly. "I'm sure you've been declared dead by now, too. The last Jedi, no more."

She bit her lip, looking down at her lap. Poe had undoubtedly delivered the news to the Resistance by now. She remembered, finally, forcing his X-wing to return to the Resistance base just before she fell unconscious, knowing that he would have gone after her if she hadn't. If the First Order hadn't announced her demise to the galaxy, certainly Poe had told Leia and Finn.

This time, she met his eyes, and that same magnetic gaze locked them together. "Why did you save me?"

His expression did not change. He remained dispassionate, even as he sighed. "I don't know," he admitted finally. "But you have to admit, we have a certain…tension."

Rey's laugh surprised even her. A smile broke across her face, and she laughed, struggling to stop. "Tension?" Tears stung her eyes as she breathed between giggles. "I think we are past that, Ben, officially."

They both looked away. It was the first time either of them had addressed their tryst out loud. Rey was embarrassed, but tension? That was absurd. Whatever tension they had they had broken when they had orgasmed in each other's arms.

Finally, Ren spoke again. "I wonder if the only way we can trust each other is to…" He trailed off, second-guessing his thought.

"Read each other's minds?" Rey finished for him, bristling. Her amber eyes flashed to him, and her gaze was sharp with accusation. "So you can 'take whatever you want?'"

He sighed. He deserved that, he supposed. "No. Besides, we have proved already that when it comes to you, I can't."

She considered, and he felt that her eyes were trying to probe his soul. "Fine, Ben. I will if you will."

They paused, staring at each other as if trying to see which one of them would back down first. She expected him to go back on his end of the bargain almost instantly, and yet… Hesitantly, she reached out to take his hand, and he reached out in return.

Their hands moved almost in slow-motion. Again, it was as if they were playing chicken. Who would drop their hand first?

Suddenly, Rey froze. "What does it matter?" she said. "Even if our intentions for each other are pure, if we work together, where do we go? I want to go back to the Resistance, you to the First Order. How do we settle that difference?"

Kylo Ren considered that for a moment, working his lips slightly. "I don't know," he admitted. Rey dropped her hand to her lap, and a long moment later, he did the same. He looked away, and off into the distance. "My offer still stands, you know. We could create our own order, together."

A pained frown crossed Rey's face. "I can't, Ben. Everyone I love, my new family, is the in Resistance. I cannot be party to anything that would result in their destruction."

Ren swallowed, but before he could speak, Rey spoke again: "I know you are conflicted, Ben. I know you don't agree with all of the First Order's methods." Her voice dropped to a low murmur; she was afraid to speak the last words aloud in case they triggered his rage. "I know you are just looking for a place to belong."

He stood sharply, turning away from her. "You think that's all I am? A child looking for a place to belong? That that's the only reason I'm with the First Order?" She watched the back of his head, hearing the contained fury in his tone. "What about you, Rey? You were looking for a family, a place to belong, and you found the Resistance. How are we any different?"

Rey laid back on the cot, exhausted. She studied the ceiling, looking at every imperfection in the tiles. "We aren't," she said, and he glanced back at her. She continued to count every pore in the ceiling tiles, unwilling to risk more fear by meeting the fire in his eyes head-on. She imagined him igniting his lightsaber at any moment, slashing her and the rest of this medical bay to melted pieces. She took a deep breath and spoke anyway. "The only difference is what side we ended up on. Ben, can I be honest with you?"

He scoffed, walking over to the far wall. "Weren't you being honest already?" he asked, turning to lean with his back against the wall. She could feel his eyes on her, but, still, she refused to look at him.

She didn't address his question. "I think the only reason you turned to the First Order, to the Dark side, was to rebel against your parents. Especially your father. I think if you didn't feel like you had to prove something to them, you would've ended up with the Resistance."

He met her statements with silence, and she was suddenly acutely aware that her own lightsaber was at her hip under her flight suit. If she had to get to it in a hurry, she would have quite a struggle. She held her breath, all of her senses on high alert, waiting…

He turned on his heels and strode out of the room. The door shut behind him. She finally broke her stare at the ceiling and looked at the wall where he had just been standing. The room felt larger, now that she was alone.

The med droid rolled over to her, blocking her view. "You should get some rest," it said, in that false, soothing female voice.

She turned over onto her side, ripples of pain shooting through her ribs and arms with the movement. She shut her eyes determinedly. If he wanted to kill her, he would have done so already. Since he hadn't, she might as well get some sleep.


	10. Chapter 10

Supreme Leader Armitage Hux read the communiqué with satisfaction. It was succinct, clean, and unambiguous. _Supreme Leader Kylo Ren killed in battle. General Armitage Hux to succeed him. Investigations into the circumstances of Kylo Ren's death reveal him to be a traitor_.

Hux allowed himself a hint of a smile. The loose edges could be tucked in so neatly. If Ren somehow lived through the crash, if he somehow found a way off that tiny, insignificant planetoid, he would be a wanted man. Kylo Ren may be able to choke individuals into submission, but he could not manage the entirety of the First Order. Hux had won.

Now, he only had to deal with the matter of the pesky Resistance. Easier, he thought, now that he no longer had to deal with Kylo Ren's personal agenda getting in the way. For the first time, he could imagine a mission, an attack, where Kylo Ren did not have some overinflated emotional reaction against his family or that _girl_.

Hux again fought against an emerging sneer as he reflected on the order that no one in the First Order ranks was ever to speak Ren's true name. Childish, he thought. If he were a stronger leader, a stronger person, he would use that name as a banner. Ben Solo in open defiance could bring down his father and his mother, sending his family crashing to the ground in the name of the true good, order in the galaxy. The First Order would have rallied around him like a god.

Instead, Hux thought, Ren was weak. He had to hide from his true name to build his intimidation, and, more relevantly, to hide the fact that he still was sentimental about his roots. Despite his murder of his father, Ren could not hide from the fact that he harbored weakness, sentimentality. Especially for his mother, and the girl.

The girl might be dead, too, Hux mused. Certainly, if Kylo Ren had perished in that crash, he had brought the last Jedi down with him. That communiqué he had yet to broadcast. He relished in the idea of the Resistance's hope being buoyed by Kylo Ren's death, only to be razed to the ground with the realization their beloved Jedi, their symbol, had been killed as well. Timing was everything in that little sadistic ploy, and Hux had waited long enough to allow himself a little pleasure.

But, he thought to himself, there was a greater pleasure yet to come.

Truly, Hux did not believe Kylo Ren had died in that crash. No, somehow that loathsome creature would have sustained himself with his Force sorcery. That face, that angsty teenager pout, would come back to haunt him. Unless, Hux thought, he crushed him to his core.

The path to that was simple: General Leia Organa.

Despite his outward emotionless countenance, despite his actions against his family, Kylo Ren had a soft spot. Ren had relished in pushing Hux's buttons for years, and now, Hux was going to push Kylo Ren's giant, red self-destruct button. The death of Leia Organa would tear Kylo Ren apart at the seams and leave in his place a weak and broken Ben Solo.

Hux's blood vibrated with the very thought. Why kill your greatest nemesis when instead you could tear them limb from limb and make them feel _every_ _wound_?

Hux gazed out the viewport at the nearly finished Star Dreadnought, _Supremacy II_. This time, they didn't need a grand weapon. No Death Star, no Starkiller Base, would be necessary to reduce the Resistance to Rubble. In fact, a simple blaster would do, in the right hands. Grand battle was not the objective, just assassination.

Again, he let a small smile cross his face. He hoped Kylo Ren was alive, to experience his grand machinations. He only wished he could see his face the moment he realized that his precious girl and his precious mother were gone.

* * *

General Leia Organa was standing at the computer looking at schematics when the Force delivered her the news she was waiting for. She gasped and for a moment, her knees were weak. C-3PO noticed her sway, and turned to her, alarmed.

"Prin-ah, General, are you alright?" he asked, taking a couple of steps towards her.

She steadied herself, returning her face to a calm mask. "Threepio, I need to speak with Finn and Commander Dameron."

"Right away, General. I will bring them to you." C-3PO shuffled off dutifully, and Leia closed her eyes.

The Light and the Dark flickered back to life in the Force like flames. Ben and Rey were alive, somewhere, she could feel it. Relief flowed through her, cool and comforting. She laughed shortly to herself, realizing that they were alone together, against her orders. Profoundly alone, in all likelihood, stranded on the fuel station after the crash.

Leia had not seen what exactly had passed between them on the Star Destroyer when Rey had gone to retrieve the flight path of the supply ships, but she had seen more than she let on to Rey. Of one thing she was sure: physical contact had been made, and not in confrontation.

A tear prickled in her eye. Ben was more like his father than either he or Han was willing to admit if a girl could coax him into doing the right thing. The two boys had always been at odds with each other, but Leia suspected that was because they were more alike than they were willing to admit.

"General Organa," said Poe Dameron's voice, interrupting her thoughts. "You wanted to see us?"

"What is it?" Finn asked, "Is there news about Rey?"

Leia considered for a moment the tactical benefits of the news remaining secret. After all, her loyalty remained with the Resistance above all else. "You have to keep what I am about to say a secret, even from the others here. Do you understand?"

Finn and Poe looked at each other, and then at her. Both of them nodded.

"Both Kylo Ren and Rey are alive, and together," she said.

Both Finn and Poe seemed to lean forward with the news. For a moment, neither of them could speak. "We need to go after her," Finn said, finding his voice first. "He could kill her."

Poe was mentally climbing into his X-wing already. Leia could see it in his eyes. "Send me and Finn. We'll bring her home."

"No," she said, and she watched the confusion pass through their eyes. "She is on her own. We can't risk the First Order learning of Kylo Ren's survival. We have to leave them be."

Anger visibly clouded Finn's face. "So you'll let him kill her instead?"

Leia swallowed. Answering that question required tact. "Rey can take care of herself. Remember, she's encountered Kylo Ren before and has always come back in one piece."

Finn looked at Poe for support, but Poe cast his eyes downward. It appeared that he was starting to take Leia's orders more seriously. "Finn," he said, "Rey is a friend, and she was my wingman in that fight. I love her too, and I want her back. But, I think General Organa might be right. If we can leave the First Order without Kylo Ren even a little longer, we might be able to get the upper hand."

Leia looked at the two men, and her heart ached. Ever since Ben had rebelled against her, her motherly instincts had searched for another place to nurture. Poe and Finn had become like sons to her, and Rey like a daughter. "We have to trust in Rey to get herself home for now. And we have to make the most of this opportunity to act."

* * *

Kylo Ren sat in the command lounge of the First Order outpost, brooding. He kept his lightsaber in his hand, waiting for the urge to destroy something to take him. But the rage hadn't come. Instead, he stared at the hilt absently, considering Rey.

Her words had angered him deeply. Her implication that the only reason he had joined the First Order was a teenaged rebellion against the authority of his parents offended him. Is this what everyone thought of him, of his rise to power? That he, in an act of youth, had joined the First Order just because it was what his parents didn't want him to do?

He admitted that he gained satisfaction from the fact that his actions hurt his father. Han Solo had never believed in the Force, at least, not as profoundly as Ben and his mother had. From the moment Ben had first expressed interest in learning the Force, Han had discouraged him, encouraging him to pursue 'real' interests like piloting and engineering.

Of course, this implied that either of his parents took much of an interest in him at all. Leia was embroiled in her senatorship, trying to shape the New Republic into something worthy of ruling the galaxy. He was lucky to get to spend time in her office while she was off at meetings. Sometimes, he even got snatches of her at lunch or dinner, when she wasn't communicating with someone on a hologram. Otherwise, he was left in the care of his father, who was often too busy smuggling this or that behind Leia's back to actually care for him. Ben spent much of his boyhood in the care of someone else or listening to his parents complain about each other. Leia was too devoted to her job and spent too much time in one place. Han was too devoted to his life of smuggling and couldn't be bothered to take an interest in the nascent Republic. No one was happy.

Ben had found solace in the Force. It was something he could focus on when he was alone, something he could devote his time to. He was a curious and voracious learner, and devoured all of the lore he could find, on the Light and on the Dark.

When his mother had sent him to study under Luke, he found a sense of purpose, but he continued to lack a sense of belonging. The other learners became jealous of his power, became afraid of his volatility. Even Luke seemed jealous of his raw talent and treated him like he sensed something in him that Ben himself could not see. Constantly, he felt like an outsider being analyzed and feared, by Han, by Luke, by his colleagues.

Snoke had preyed on that, of course. Kylo Ren had grown enough into himself to see that selfishness in his former master. Snoke had not cared about Kylo Ren at all, he had just cared that the strongest talent with the Force would become a pawn to use at his disposal. It benefitted Snoke for Kylo Ren to be vulnerable, volatile. That way, he would continue to need Snoke for guidance, and Snoke could continue to use him for his power.

Becoming Kylo Ren was a choice that Ben Solo made to gain something he hadn't had in his life up to that point: control. He had always taken a back seat to someone, Han Solo, Leia Organa, Snoke. Becoming Kylo Ren gave him power.

Power that Rey's mere presence in the galaxy threatened to take away. Every moment that she existed, the wall over the conflict within him tore open like a fresh cut, bleeding anew. He would give anything to have her at his side. He tried to give her the galaxy.

She didn't want it, of course. She was not interested in power, in control. She wanted only inclusion, family, peace.

And he wanted only her.

Inevitably, the rush of desire washed over him. It always did, whenever he was alone. No matter his thoughts, it always came full-circle. To her.

If only she had known the depth of his desperation, that day on the Star Destroyer, how long he had craved touch. For all his power, for all his bravado, she had been his first. Up to the moment he found her, he had desired power above all else. Until he set eyes on her freckled features, he had prioritized his career, his training, over physical affection.

It's not that he was asexual, he thought, shifting uncomfortably in his chair. Certainly, his body had made its desire known to him before Rey. Usually, he would attempt to ignore the temptation, dismissing his body's needs as further weakness, until he could bear it no longer.

He had never imagined his practice with denial and control would serve him as well as it had in the closet. A less-practiced man would have been ended when she gasped his name, her leg on his shoulder.

He put his head in his hands. He could feel his arousal tightening his pants. He could smell her, could feel her atop him. The memories were tangible to him. The moment that her hands had touched his bare flesh he had become undone.

The power he had felt when she had orgasmed from his touch was all the power he needed.

In agony, he sat back in the chair, willing the arousal to fade. Instead, the fight in Snoke's throne room came to his mind. He could feel the pressure of her hand on his thigh, he could hear her grunts of exertion. He had been aroused that day, too, and he had surrendered to his urges with shame.

He wondered if she felt any of this pain, if she had ever been forced to give her own body pleasure for just a moment's peace. And if she had, had she thought of him?

He groaned, in mental and sexual frustration. What he wouldn't give to stride straight back to that medical bay and have her right there on the cot. What he wouldn't give to hear her gasp his name again…

Even Supreme Leader Kylo Ren would fall to his knees to serve the pleasures of Rey the scavenger, even as she gasped Ben's name in return. He and Ben finally shared something in common again.

* * *

Rey stirred slightly in her light slumber, becoming aware of a dull ache at her core. Unlike her other aches, however, this one would not be quelled by analgesia. For a while, she weathered it tolerantly. It was a familiar feeling to her, the ache in her pelvis, and it often came to her in times of twilight sleep.

Something nagged at the back of her mind, however. It didn't seem right, to be feeling this, considering her wounds and her location. The last thing on her mind after surviving a crash should be sex, and yet…

She jolted awake, realizing that it was _his_ arousal she felt in her gut. The Force-bond had connected them enough at this moment that she was feeling his arousal as if it were her own. Although, that wasn't entirely accurate, as she knew she could only feel arousal in the way she felt it now, a burning between thighs slick with fluid. He felt it as tightness, and as a need to fill. She felt it as a need to be filled.

Her face flushed as the memories of their encounter on the Star Destroyer flooded through her. She felt his tongue between her legs, torturing her mercilessly. Fantasy blended with it seamlessly, and she felt his fingers slipping into her wet cunt, finding instantly the spot within her that brought the most pleasure.

Rey had been physically innocent before their encounter, but many times before she had imagined what sex might feel like with a man. She had discovered physical pleasure long ago, when she had accidentally come across a couple in the alleys of Niima outpost. In the moment she had been surprised and disgusted, but later, in the privacy of her makeshift home, she had discovered a new feeling.

But with Ben, it was different than when she was by herself. Never before had she desired power, but the moment that the Supreme Leader of the First Order fell to his knees to pleasure her, she had discovered how intoxicating power could be.

Just the thought of that feeling sent a new wave of arousal through her. She could feel him, just as aroused as she was, recognize their connection. For a moment, they ached together, relishing in the desperate desire they both felt for each other.

Knowing he was nearby only heightened her buzzing desire. At any moment, he could come crashing through the door to find her, burning for his touch.

She was startled to hear her own voice aloud before she realized she was speaking. "I want you to kneel for me again," she said. Her face reddened as she voiced her fantasy aloud: "I want to feel the Supreme Leader between my legs again."

She felt him physically straining against his pants. She could feel him struggling not to give in, to touch himself, despite the agony of the cloth on his length. She knew if she could see him, his pupils would be large and black, his cheeks and lips would be flushed, and his breaths would be shallow. She knew she looked the same and wondered if he imagined her too.

He did not answer. She wondered if he could hear her voice, or if the Force had only connected them enough to feel each other, to drive them mad.

Unsteadily, she rose and walked to the door. Any second she expected him to burst in, to press her against the wall, to fuck her senseless. Despite herself, despite her reservations about him as a person, she welcomed that intrusion. Instead, she opened the door to an empty corridor.

Giving in to herself, she started down the hallway, following their connection to its source. Inherently, she knew which way to go to find him. She wondered if he could feel her approaching. She could feel his shame regarding his arousal and wondered if she should feel the same. She didn't. She felt powerful.

Rey opened the door to the officer's lounge, knowing she would find him there. He sat, in the center chair, in the position of power, watching the door. His intense gaze locked on her as she stepped into the room.

The room was dark. He sat, apparently calm and collected, clad in all black. His hair formed a dark halo around his pale face. He had pulled a loose fold of his robe over his lap. His hands were still covered by black gloves.

She began to remove her orange flight suit, and he stood. The robe fell away from him, and she could finally see the silhouette of his arousal in his pants. He took a step forward, and her knees threatened to buckle.

She stepped out of the flight suit as he continued to approach her. She watched as he deliberately removed his gloves, tossing them aside. He stopped before her, taking her hand. He led her, hand in his, to sit in the chair he had just occupied.

Slowly, without breaking eye contact, he sank to his knees before her, as if he was kneeling before her throne. She trembled as he reached up to tear off her trousers and pants in one smooth motion. His hands pressed her knees apart, opening her legs to him. She knew she glistened with wetness already.

His eyes fell from hers to look at the pink lips hidden beneath wet brown curls. He leaned forward, kissing the inside of each knee. Her hands fell to the arms of the chair, clutching them as if she were falling. His mouth moved up the inside of her thighs gradually, teasing her. Her skin tingled with electricity.

Still, she felt his arousal, and she assumed he felt hers. Each tantalizing kiss made her heart skip a beat. She felt him smile against her skin and realized he could feel everything, and he was toying with her, enjoying every second of it.

Her eyes darkened, and from somewhere within her a new voice rang out. "Pleasure me. Now."

Without hesitation, he obeyed. His mouth found her clitoris in an instant, and she gripped the armrests harder, until her knuckles were white. Despite the white-hot pleasure coursing through her, she still wanted more. The image of his fingers penetrating her replayed in her mind. She would have asked for it, if she could have found the words.

He heard her anyway. He reached up, obeying her mental plea. She moaned as first one finger slipped inside her, and then another.

If he could feel her arousal, he could feel her pleasure. She writhed against the chair, her hips thrusting weakly towards him. Wordless sounds continued to escape her as her mind descended to what seemed like madness.

 _Don't stop,_ she pleaded mentally. _I'm close._

"Ben," she gasped aloud.

All at once, he pulled back from her. He looked at her with black eyes as she whimpered with the loss of sensation. His fingers toyed with her gently, but he did not grant her release. Instead, he stared at her, considering.

"It's not Ben who turns you on this much," he said, with amusement. She shut her eyes, blush rising in her cheeks. So he did hear her. "You wanted the Supreme Leader between your legs again," he growled, "so moan his name."

Rey could not meet his eyes. She had not been embarrassed or ashamed by her arousal, but she was ashamed to admit the idea of him in his powerful, adversarial glory was even more arousing to her than the idea of Ben the man. She shook her head slightly in answer to him, and his thumb pressed hard into her clit. She whimpered, curling towards him.

"Say it and I will let you come," he said, the patience in his voice in direct conflict to the agony he felt. He was shaking with the effort of restraining himself.

Defiance rose within her. "Ben is your true name, the true name of the Supreme Leader."

In punishment, he withdrew from her completely and leaned forward to kiss her breast. He pulled her tunic aside, and one freckled breast tumbled out of it to meet him. He took her nipple into his mouth for a moment, enough to make her groan in frustration.

"I can see your mind, Rey. I _know_ you know what I want."

Despite her body screaming at her to obey, she countered him again. "I can see your mind, too. You want to see me come by your hand, your mouth."

He took her breast to his mouth again, and this time bit down a little on her nipple, making her cry out in surprise. His hand returned between her legs, giving her just enough stimulation to keep her on the edge. "I do, Rey. I do. So let me."

She hated him in that moment, but it only made her passion stronger. She gasped in an audibly shaky breath. "Please," she begged throatily, "Kylo Ren."

She could feel him smile against her chest, and he dropped back down to pleasure her with his fingers and his mouth.

Her orgasm rose within her like a giant wave. She gasped in uneven breaths, trying to fill her lungs before the wave took her. An unbearable tightness gripped his fingers, trying to push him out, trying to keep him in. Suddenly, she couldn't draw a breath. Her body was all tension, all ache.

The first fluttering pulse squeezed his fingers, and she was overwhelmed by sensation. She cried out loudly, unable to form words. Again she was awash in a golden haze. She could feel her pulse throbbing in her chest, in her ears, in her head. The rush of her blood in her ears drowned out every sound but her voice, crying out in broken sounds.

His thoughts broke through as her pleasure started to wane. He was overwhelmed by her pleasure, and he couldn't hold back his own orgasm despite his lack of physical stimulation. His fingers trembled within her as he tensed, coming hard in his pants. His pleasure drowned her in another surging wave. His fingers slipped out of her as he fell back to sit on his heels, breathing hard with exertion.

"I'm sorry," he said breathlessly. She could feel his shame at his perceived premature completion as his lungs filled with air.

"For what?" she said, her muscles slowly relaxing. Her brain was returning to function as oxygen returned to her blood. "You felt that as clearly as I did. Both of us got our pleasure."

Gradually, their connection was fading. She could feel just an echo of him now. Aloud, he answered. "I wanted to be able to fuck you again, for you to use me for your pleasure."

Even in her post-orgasmic calm, his words prickled tantalizingly down her spine. She was exhausted, spent, but any more talk like that, and those feelings would quickly pass.

As the rush of their sex began to fade, she felt embarrassed to be so exposed when he had remained clothed. She replaced her tunic over her breast, then reached out for her trousers. He passed them to her. She shimmied into them as he watched her from the floor. She wondered if he was thinking the same thing as she: If they stayed alone together much longer on this planetoid, it was going to be dangerous. She was going to get attached.


	11. Chapter 11

Leia did not comprehend the words the first time she read them. Nor the second. She knew the letters and the words, but in that order, they made no sense to her.

 _Kylo Ren was found to be a traitor. He was responsible for the death of Supreme Leader Snoke and the escape of the Jedi Rey._

Thoughts swirled in her mind. Was this true? Did her son truly turn against Snoke and kill him? The unspoken assumption was that Rey had killed him, but, admittedly, the details had been hazy. Rey herself had not clarified the circumstances, and she had instead redirected and said she didn't remember exactly. She had been knocked unconscious somehow, and she had lost the details. Maybe that was true, but Leia suspected something else.

If her son had killed Snoke, more importantly, what were his motivations? Was it the obvious answer, that he had desired to usurp Snoke's power, or was it something else entirely? The next part of the communique only made it more confusing:

 _Kylo Ren is suspected of colluding with the Jedi Rey to impede the First Order's advance._

What _had_ passed between them since Rey's visit to Ahch-To? Could Rey have brought some light back to Kylo Ren?

"General Organa?" Poe knocked on the wall, interrupting her thoughts.

"Commander Dameron," she answered, turning to him. "What can I do for you?"

Poe looked hesitant as he took a small step forward. Leia noticed a slip of paper in his hand. "This announcement, from the First Order, is it true?"

Leia could only answer honestly. "I don't know. I admit I suspected Rey had been hiding something about her encounters with Kylo Ren since Ahch-To, but I do not know what. All I know is that her heart remains true, just as before."

Poe's courage seemed even more tested as he spoke again. "General, I know Kylo Ren is your son. Do you think this is clouding your judgment here at all?"

Leia sighed. "Of course it is. I have never wanted to hope more that this is a step towards bringing my son back to the Light. But I know, too, that he could have as easily murdered Snoke to advance his own power, and that Rey escaping was an accident. After all, he did seemingly try to kill her in the fight."

Poe shifted uncomfortably. "That's not exactly true," he said. "Kylo Ren seemed to be trying to capture her, to subdue her. He was very precise in his shots, and not a single one hit her. He would have killed me if I hadn't fallen back." Poe swallowed, uncomfortable admitting his retreat. "They collided by accident when Rey maneuvered wildly trying to lose him."

Leia considered this account thoughtfully. She was silent a moment too long, so Poe spoke again.

"I wonder if he is trying to turn her. If he brought her to the Dark side they would be nearly unstoppable as a team."

Leia nodded slowly, but she was not wholly convinced. If she could have been turned, Snoke would have turned her in the throne room. Instead, something else transpired that left Snoke dead and both Kylo and Rey alive. Without the missing details, that outcome seemed an impossibility. Kylo had been knocked unconscious, Rey had spared his life, but who had killed Snoke and subdued all his guards? Who had knocked Ren unconscious but spared Rey?

Unless Kylo Ren and Rey had worked together and yet still parted ways.

"I think there is more to this story that we yet do not know," Leia said finally. "Somewhere in between the accounts being told, there is the truth that only Rey and Kylo Ren know."

Poe frowned, looking once again at the slip of paper in his hand. "They haven't killed each other on that planet, have they?" he asked, and she heard hope in his voice. Hope, she guessed, that Rey had killed a Kylo Ren once and for all.

Leia reached out with the Force, and the familiar Light and Dark flickered back at her, unwavering. "No," she said. "They are still alive somewhere, perhaps even together."

Poe looked worried at that. He could not hide the fear that Rey would fall to the Dark side. Leia could not hide the hope that Rey could bring her son home to her.

* * *

They had argued for an hour about how best to fix the one decrepit speeder left at the outpost. Rey was annoyed and covered in grease, sprawled underneath the craft on the cold, hard ground, tinkering. She could feel him, watching impatiently, sitting in the driver's position. Every so often, she would slide out and catch his gaze wandering, staring at her legs, her waist, or the space between her legs.

"I wouldn't even scrap this piece of junk for parts," she muttered to herself, ripping a handful of wires from the engine.

He chuckled darkly. "And yet you fly the Falcon without complaint." His disdain for that ship was clear in his voice.

She remembered her comments as Finn and she had stolen the Falcon on Jakku. _The garbage will do_. "The Falcon is a special ship," she said fondly. "You only hate it because you never got to fly it."

She could feel his scowl even if she couldn't see it. "You don't have to fly junk to know junk."

She laughed shortly, reaching up into the depths of the speeder's engine with a wrench. "You know what else is junk now? Your Silencer."

She realized he had climbed out of the speeder about a second before she felt his hand grip her thigh. He yanked her out from underneath the speeder, and she looked at his hard expression with surprise, still holding the wrench above her head.

"So is your X-wing," he said, staring at her, his fingers digging into her just hard enough to remind her he could hurt her if he tried, "and on what I understand was its first flight with you as pilot."

She lowered the wrench gradually, her eyes narrowing to frown at him. "And whose fault was that, exactly?" she said accusingly.

His eyes dared her to push her luck. "I seem to recall a certain Resistance pilot making a sharp turn _directly_ into my flight path."

Rey wrinkled her brow. "Only to try to escape from the guy trying to kill me."

Kylo Ren scoffed. "I wasn't trying to kill you. If I was trying to kill you, I would have succeeded."

She knew exactly where this interaction was heading, and she couldn't bring herself to stop it. "But why exactly were you not trying to kill me, the last Jedi and the one standing in your way?"

"Well, you're a pretty decent lay…" he said, a touch of sarcasm bleeding through his tone.

"Really?" she teased. "So that's enough to stop the mighty Kylo Ren from killing you? To be a pretty decent lay?"

His other hand moved up to grip her wrist, pinning her to the ground. "It's a start," he answered, a hint of a smirk creeping into his eyes. "And that's Supreme Leader Kylo Ren to you."

She rolled her eyes but knew there was a smile starting on her face. "A start? And what's the rest, being willing to sleep with you?"

He straddled her thighs, kneeling over her. "That helps," he answered, and then kissed her hungrily.

Her hand dropped the wrench and reached up to clutch his shoulder through his shirt. Her other hand struggled against his grip, but he did not relent. She felt intoxicated by the smell of him, masculine and strong. His lips were soft, his touch firm. She heard the rustling of the trees, the chirping of the birds, and their kiss.

He broke the kiss suddenly, pulling back to look at her. His hair hung around his face. His lips were red and plump from their kiss.

"How am I supposed to fix the speeder if you distract me like that?" she asked breathlessly. She was entranced by his eyes, by the marks of her kiss on him.

"What if I distract you further?" he asked, his voice dulcet, deep.

She couldn't answer. He took her breath in another kiss. Her hand entwined in his hair. His hand moved from her hip to beneath the small of her back, pulling her into him. His other hand continued to restrain her wrist, even as she struggled against him. She wanted to touch him, to feel him, to pull off his clothes.

His lips moved to her ear, his lips brushing her ear as he spoke. "Don't worry," he said softly, "I will let you use me however you want soon enough."

He started kissing her neck, and his mouth was warm. She sighed in contentment, in pleasure. His hand caught her free hand as it fell from his hair, and he pinned them both together above her head. He let his pelvis rest against her, and she felt the firmness of his arousal. He kissed her neck and her jaw as she writhed trying to free herself from his grasp.

He sat back on his knees, letting go of her long enough to pull her tunic over her head. She reached out to take off his shirt, but he caught her wrists again, this time pinning them at her sides. He leaned down, this time kissing her clavicles, the hollow of her neck, between her breasts. Her breaths shallowed, and goosebumps prickled down her arms. Her nipples were stiff and pink as her arousal built.

Ignoring her breasts, he kissed down her belly. The tip of his tongue tickled her navel. Her frustration built; she wanted to touch him, to feel his muscles, his warm skin, his soft hair. Lazily, he continued to tease her, kissing her anywhere and everywhere except her breasts.

"Please," she gasped, pulling against his grasp.

"Please what?" he asked, in between kisses. She could tell he enjoyed watching her struggle, desperate to touch him.

"Let me touch you," she growled, a touch of the same power in her voice from the command lounge.

He smiled against her abdomen. His grip loosened long enough for him to tear her trousers and pants off. Again, he fended off her advances and grasped her wrists again.

"Patience," he said, smirking.

He kissed her thighs, starting at her knees, advancing upward, then doubling back. Every so often, he would kiss her belly again, or her chest. Her skin was on fire.

Finally, he took one of her nipples into his mouth. He kissed her sensually, making her moan.

All at once, he pulled away from her, letting her go. He tore his shirt over his head and leaned back down to kiss her mouth again with redoubled passion. This time, he left her wrists free, and she entwined one hand in his hair, and the other hand grasped his shoulder, her fingernails digging into his skin.

His arms wrapped around under her, under the small of her back at first, and then her shoulders. He turned slowly, pulling her on top of him. Suddenly, she was straddling him, her naked sex pressing against his clothed erection.

This time, she broke the kiss. Her mouth went immediately to his pectorals, then his abs. She kissed him everywhere, where every muscle was defined. This time, his nipples tightened in brown peaks. She admired the V-shaped muscles that started above his waist, converging beneath his pants. They seemed to point her to his arousal, and anticipation washed over her like a wave.

Her hands trembled as she pulled off his trousers, then his pants. His arousal stood at attention, impossible to ignore.

She looked at him, and his eyes were soft again, pleading, even as his pupils were dark with arousal. She crawled up over him, looking down into his eyes.

She leaned down, whispering in his ear. "I'm going to ride you, and I'm going to cry out your name. I'm going to come so hard, and I'm going to scream Ben Solo."

He growled, but this time, she caught his wrists and pinned them down. "Now, now, Ben. You said I could use you however I wanted."

She knew he could feel her, warm and wet, on his erection. She moved her hips gently, allowing the smallest bit of friction against his length. He grunted, his eyes closing involuntarily.

"Do you want to be inside me?" she asked, sitting back to look at his face.

"Yes," he gasped brokenly. Her hips continued to move back and forth against him.

"Do you, _Ben_?" she said, stressing his name and planting her palms on his chest.

He hesitated, but still did not open his eyes. "Yes," he answered finally.

She smiled and rewarded him by slipping his erection into her warm wetness. He groaned, a long sound that sounded like it was torn from his throat.

For a long moment, she was still, feeling him inside her. She pressed her hips against his, keeping his wrists pinned down.

"Please," he gasped, opening his eyes.

"Please what?" she teased, even though she was barely restraining herself from moving.

"Anything," he managed. "I can't stand it."

She moved her hips in a lazy circle. His hands clenched into fists and then opened again. Her smile broadened, and she repeated the motion.

"You said anything," she said innocently, as he grunted in frustration.

He trembled beneath her with the effort of not taking over the rhythm. "Yes," he answered, "anything you want."

She laughed and guided one of his hands to her breast, and the other to her clitoris. She braced herself with her hands on his shoulders and started to ride him with excruciating slowness.

He tentatively started to thrust to meet her, as she combined the circular motion with an up-and-down rhythm. His fingers moved on her clit determinedly as their passion built together.

The sounds of their sex filled her ears. Every sound of pleasure from him was almost as arousing as his fingers on her clit. She moved slowly but firmly, feeling his erection inside her, filling her. She felt arousal building to satisfaction, and then she suddenly became aware of the bond connecting them again.

His pleasure appeared beside hers in her mind. She moaned when she felt it; it was profound and powerful, like hers but different. He was so aroused, and it took so much effort to keep her slow, delicious pace.

"Oh, Ben," she moaned.

That syllable jolted him, but to his frustration continued to arouse him. He didn't want to react that way to that name, but every time she said it, it was even more powerful.

"Rey," he grunted, as, for a moment, the pleasure threatened to end him prematurely.

She slowed immediately, bringing him back from the edge. "Not without me," she said, resuming slow and lazy circles.

In response, he moved his fingers rapidly on her clitoris. Involuntarily, her hips started moving back and forth against him. "Yes, Ben."

Time seemed to lose meaning, and then they were on the edge together. She was thrusting against him desperately, and he was meeting her, matching her rhythm. Neither one could contain the wordless sounds of pleasure. Neither could form coherent thoughts.

"Ben," she moaned.

"Rey."

Pleasure took them both like an avalanche. The familiar warm, golden glow took her. Pulses of pleasure gripped him within her as he surrendered to his own orgasm. Warmth spread through her limbs as her heart pounded in her chest. All of her senses seemed on fire, and yet she couldn't make sense of any of it. She gasped for air, drowning in satisfaction; she gripped him tightly, feeling like she was floating away. His pleasure mirrored hers, and the summation overwhelmed her. There was only oblivion, pleasure, relief.

Gradually, their orgasms passed. She rolled off of him to lay on the ground, struggling to catch her breath. His mind was absent from hers again, but she didn't know when she had lost it.

"What are we going to do?" he murmured, staring at the sky. "We can hardly keep doing this without deciding where we stand otherwise."

"Can't we?" she asked, wistfully. "It's easy."

He laughed, then fell silent. A long moment passed before he spoke again: "I haven't changed, Rey. Not really."

"Not yet," she said. "But you did save me. That's something."

"I don't know what it is about you, Rey," he admitted. "Our destinies are intertwined, but I don't know how."

"Maybe we stay on this planet forever, away from the war," she said. She knew it wasn't true, but for a moment, she wished it was. She liked him, despite herself. Here, it was easier to ignore his Dark leanings, it was easier to see him as a lonely person, looking for a way to make sense of the world.

He didn't answer her. Just like their first time, in the closet on the Star Destroyer, he took her hand in his. After a long moment and a gentle squeeze, he let go. He sat up to dress again, and she did the same.

"I should let you finish the speeder," he said, standing. "I trust you to fix it. You don't need my unhelpful suggestions."

"No, stay," she said. She smiled at him. "I need someone to hand me things."

He laughed. "Alright. I'll stay. But I'm going to continue to make suggestions if I'm here."

She rolled her eyes, taking up the wrench again. "I expected no less."


	12. Chapter 12

Supreme Leader Armitage Hux boarded the _Supremacy II_ like he was coming home after a long voyage. The crisp, clean scent of new construction filled his nostrils. This was the ultimate satisfaction. He boarded the new flagship of the First Order as its leader at long last.

"Supreme Leader," said one of his command crew. He didn't know his name. It didn't matter to him. "The course is set for Aronat Minor, as you requested."

Hux nodded, a hint of a smile tugging at his lips. "Very good."

As he strode towards the bridge, troopers and officers alike snapped to attention and saluted him as he passed. He felt anticipation coursing through him like electricity. His plan was perfect, so well designed.

It was almost perfect in its simplicity. He preyed on the Resistance's biggest weakness: they couldn't stand to watch the loss of innocent life. He had chosen Aronat Minor due to its heavy population and lack of weapons or a fleet to protect it. The New Republic Starfleet had once provided them protection, but as their rule had fallen to pieces, they had eased their protection of planets not on major trade routes.

Hux planned to fly his shiny new Dreadnought and two-thirds of the First Order Starfleet to the planet and open fire on the cities. The Resistance would not be able to stay away, and they would fly right into his trap.

If he was correct, even General Leia Organa herself would show up to protect the innocents of Aronat Minor. And once she showed up, the real plan would begin.

He had yet to get word that Kylo Ren had shown up alive, but he knew that it was just a matter of time. He couldn't be rid of him that easily, not after years of playing second fiddle to that entitled kid. That's why phase two of his plan consisted of only one simple goal: assassination.

Kylo Ren's only weakness was his retained sentimentality. Armitage Hux had planned the assassination of his own father, and when it was carried out, he felt no remorse, only power. Kylo Ren had killed his own father and had started to come apart at the seams.

Notably, there was also a rumor amongst the cockier TIE pilots that the shot that destroyed the bridge of the _Raddus_ did not come from Kylo Ren. They held, vocally, that Kylo Ren had a perfect shot and hesitated. Instead, one of his wingmen had been forced to take the shot.

Kylo Ren had failed to kill his mother, even when given the opportunity on a silver platter.

Hux allowed a smile to cross his face as he stepped onto the bridge, the officers standing to salute. Ren may not have been able to kill his mother, but Hux had no such reservations. In fact, he was willing to orchestrate the attack on hundreds of thousands of innocent people just for the opportunity.

* * *

The _Supremacy II_ dropped out of Hyperspace in silent majesty. Seconds later, smaller ships began to appear around it, dotting the sky like dark stars. Eight Star Destroyers disengaged from their docked position on the _Supremacy II_ , floating out amongst the growing fray.

Aronat Minor seemed peaceful floating amongst the twinkling stars. It was a small planet, primarily tan, green, and blue. Wispy white clouds swirled in the atmosphere. The lights of civilization sprawled over about half of the planet, glittering in orange and yellow and blue.

Almost a hundred ships hovered in firing range of the planet. In the silence of space, it was easy to forget the people on the ships, on the planet. It was like shapes in the sky, a rock against stars.

A single green bolt from a cannon sped towards the planet. It tore through the atmosphere and erupted into fire amongst the lights of one of the planet's cities.

Deliberately, more shots followed at a relaxed rhythm from the fleet. The planet's surface started to burn, but slowly, allowing the population time to worry, to squirm.

Starships started to attempt departure, escape. The First Order fleet allowed none to pass.

Hux smiled, watching the destruction unfold on the viewscreen before him. "Keep a slow pace. Give the Resistance time to come."

* * *

In the makeshift command central of the Resistance, alarms started blaring. Red lights flashed, and people started running, trying to make sense of the chaos.

"Transmissions coming in, New Republic and civilian," said Lieutenant Connix. "Distress calls from Aronat Minor."

"Most of the First Order fleet is deployed," said another operations officer, over the fray. "The new Mega-class Star Dreadnought _Supremacy II_ leads the attack."

Poe Dameron shifted uncomfortably. He stood still, staring, as everyone bustled around him. "General Organa, I think this is a trap."

Leia did not look up. She was leaning over one of the command computers, reading the printout. Poe knew what was printed. Aronat Minor unarmed. New Republic fleet unable to be deployed. Recommend surrender to First Order.

"Four of the most populous cities have been hit so far," Connix updated. Poe groaned internally.

Aronat Minor had no significance, strategically, to either the Resistance or the First Order. It was a small planet, with no major manufacturing, exports, or imports. It was a peaceful planet, with no military, no Starfleet. It boasted a large population, mostly crammed into about 15 metropolises.

"Commander Dameron, ready your squadrons," Leia said, not looking up to meet his troubled eyes. "Everyone, I think it's time to deploy our fleet. The First Order has unveiled their _Supremacy II_ , and I think it's time for us to show them the _Luke Skywalker_."

General Organa had wasted no time obtaining a new flagship for the Resistance. The new MC85 Cruiser had been named after the spark of hope that had rippled through the galaxy after the showdown on Crait. For Leia, it meant more. If her brother had died silently on Ahch-To, he deserved to live on as a symbol of hope once more. Especially now that the legend of him facing the First Order single-handedly had inspired thousands of new Resistance sympathizers.

"General Organa, you know I am traditionally the last to protest an attack on the First Order," Poe said, stepping over to her and leaning to force her to look at him, "but something is wrong here."

"Commander Dameron, I respect your opinion but I still remain in charge here," she said, simply, dismissing him.

"General Organa. The First Order chose to attack Aronat Minor because it is unarmed and heavily populated. Hux knew we would be unable to resist the bait and deploy to meet them. It's a trap."

Leia met his eyes, and she looked weary. "I know it's a trap, Commander. But we can't let them slaughter thousands of innocent people, no matter their motivations."

Poe sighed. "Something is wrong here, General. I think Hux is designing to make a bigger move here, and he needs us to deploy to Aronat Minor to do it."

Leia stared at him a long moment, considering. "What do you suggest we do instead, Commander? Aside from leaving a peaceful, unarmed planet full of people to die."

Poe could not stand to meet her gaze. He looked down, his mind working. Slowly, he shook his head. "I don't know. But maybe you should stay behind, with some of the fleet, just in case."

Leia smiled gently. "My place is with my soldiers, Commander. I am not the type to stay behind and cower."

Poe became aware again of the people moving around him, readying the fleet, silencing the alarms, as if the room had become un-paused. Red lights continued to flash, intermittently bathing Leia's face in an ominous glow. The discomfort in his gut had not quieted. He searched for something else he could say, somehow he could put his worries into words and make her listen.

"Ready your squadrons, Commander Dameron," Leia repeated, but this time her voice was kind.

After a long moment, Poe nodded. "Yes, General."

She clasped his shoulder, giving it a comforting squeeze. He looked down again, then at her. He couldn't shake the feeling that she knew something he didn't, and that whatever he was worried about she knew and had already accepted.

"Poe," she said, as he started to step away, "may the Force be with you."

Poe nodded, but couldn't shake the feeling that those words felt like goodbye.

* * *

Hux watched with satisfaction as the first of the Resistance fleet began to arrive: light fighters, darting in and out of the mass of First Order ships, firing tiny flashes of light that skidded across shields. He had waited many hours for this moment, and he was not disappointed.

It seemed, as he had predicted, the entire attack fleet had been deployed to deal with Hux's manufactured situation. X-wings, A-wings, and Y-wings dropped into the fray, flashing in their frantic paths like minnows.

"Deploy the light fighters," Hux said, smirking. The fighters poured out of the depths of the _Supremacy II_ and the Star Destroyers like sand through an hourglass.

The sky before him was filled with blaster and cannon shots, orange and green. He felt like the conductor of a grand orchestra, directing the performance of his own symphonic masterpiece.

Still, impatience prickled at him. Where were the larger ships? Where was General Organa?

One Resistance cruiser dropped out of light speed. A small complement of light fighters spilled out of its hangar for protection. The slightest iridescence of a shield shimmered in the light of the battle. It was an old model, left over from the Rebel Alliance. It looked like an arrowhead if an arrowhead had been smoothed and softened so that every line was a curve, every bump a gentle swell.

"Is that the best you can afford, now, General Organa?" Hux murmured out loud, considering. The ship's designation flickered on his monitor: _Echo of Hope_.

A second cruiser joined the battle, just before Hux made the order to attack. Shaped more like a spear than an arrow, this one was no Rebel leftover. The twin sister of the kamikaze _Raddus_ , the new ship floated behind _Echo of Hope_ , spilling its own payload of light fighters into the sky.

Again, the ship's designation flickered into life in front of him. _Luke Skywalker_.

"That's the one," he said, a little louder. "Aim our primary cannons at that ship."

A rumble rocked the hull of the _Supremacy II_. Hux turned his eye to the secondary viewscreen, where he watched a squadron of Resistance fighters systematically attacking their ion cannons. At his order, they began to turn, shuddering and scraping where the rents in their metal scraped the _Supremacy II_ 's hull. One of the cannons quaked to a violent stop, stuck against its own metallic wounds.

The second cannon began charging, a yellow-orange glow starting in its depths. The Resistance fighters fired desperately, to no effect.

Until one X-wing abandoned all reason and flew directly into the yaw of the charging ion cannon. The small fighter fired all four of its guns into the mouth of the cannon, again and again.

Even the bridge rocked with the force of the explosion as the ion cannon ripped apart from the inside out. The secondary viewscreen went dead as rage passed through Hux like a ghost.

"Who is that pilot?" he snarled. "Take him out!"

* * *

Poe's X-wing was buffeted wildly by debris from the ion cannon as the energy rippled out, tearing a rent in the hull of the Dreadnought ship above him. BB-8 beeped worriedly as they worked to regain control of their flight path. TIE fighters were closing fast.

"We've got to be careful, fighters!" Poe said, addressing the squadrons on the widest-available channel. "Hux is targeting the _Luke Skywalker_ , and I think he intends to distract us long enough to take it out."

BB-8 chirped again. The TIE fighters were too close for comfort. "I hear ya, buddy!" Poe said, "Let's lose 'em!"

Poe started a tight roll, tucking his flight right up against the hull of the mega-ship. Blasts from the TIE cannons skimmed his shields. Dead ahead of him, another cannon rose from the hull like a tree from the ground. He increased his throttle to full, eyes fixed on the cannon as it grew larger and larger...

Poe pushed his flight stick down with all his might, dropping away from the cannon a mere second before impact. The TIE pilots weren't as fast. One attempted to dive sideways to avoid impact, and instead lost control of his ship, spiraling first into his companion, and then into the cannon. A yellow fireball erupted from the impact, and Poe assumed the cannon had also been destroyed in the crash.

"Close one!" Poe remarked, and BB-8 beeped his agreement.

He started to correct his course to rejoin the battle and was granted a panoramic view of the action. Flashes from blasters, cannons, and explosions lit the sky like lightning. Debris floated between the ships like a minefield, Resistance and First Order metal indistinguishable once in small enough pieces. Poe was struck with one thought before all others: the Resistance fleet stood no chance against the First Order.

Instead of voicing his thought, he rallied the squadrons. "All right, guys. We've got to make each ship feel like 20. Make 'em hurt!"

Still, Poe could not take his eyes off the _Skywalker_ , targeting one of the Star Destroyers alongside the _Echo of Hope._ General Leia Organa was the last remaining member of the founding Resistance High Command, and she was onboard that ship. That could not be insignificant.

Both cruisers had only a skeleton crew, as that was all they could manage as their numbers dwindled. They needed pilots for the fighters, and the ones leftover were divided between the two larger ships, with just enough crewmembers to manage the guns and the flight. Hux knew this, Poe thought. He had been present at the Battle of Crait, at the decimation of the Resistance during the escape from the _Raddus_. Almost the entirety of the resistance had been contained in the _Millennium Falcon_ following the Battle of Crait. Hux was not targeting the _Skywalker_ to dwindle their numbers further. He didn't need to.

No, Hux's goal was simpler, more direct. He wanted to cripple the Resistance in another way: killing Leia Organa herself.

Poe had no idea if Hux knew Rey and Kylo Ren were alive. No word had come from the First Order on that subject. But, if he believed that Rey was dead, killing the Resistance's last symbol of hope would definitely justify this trap.

"Poe, you ok?" Finn's voice came through the communicator. Poe scanned the sky, looking for his A-wing.

Poe remembered himself, throttling his X-wing back into the battle. "Yeah, Finn, I'm good! You?"

"This thing's a lot sturdier than a skimmer with a monoski!" he said, laughing. Poe spotted him, arcing above a crumbling TIE fighter.

"And a lot quicker," Poe agreed. He resumed firing as he came within range of one of the Star Destroyers. "Finn?"

"Yeah, Poe?"

"These ships got any weaknesses you'd like to share? I think we could use an advantage right about now!"

"If you can get their shields down they crumple like paper under fire," Finn answered. "But as long as their shields are up, Poe, we're not gonna take 'em."

"I was afraid you'd say something like that," Poe answered.

BB-8 interrupted his thoughts with an urgent chirp. Poe acted immediately, cutting to the side as a blast from the Dreadnought rocketed past. "Thanks, buddy! Looks like we made someone mad!"

Poe resumed a darting flight, engaging the battle once again. If this was how the Resistance was going to end, they were not going to fizzle out. They were going to fight until the very last man. And as long as he could still get under Hux's skin, he still had a reason to keep flying.


	13. Chapter 13

Even with the speeder, it had taken them hours to reach the fuel station. They had weathered the ride in uneasy silence. Rey had, against her better judgment, allowed Kylo Ren to drive. To her satisfaction, the speeder had worked well enough, allowing them to traverse the planetoid in hours instead of days.

"What is the plan, exactly?" Rey asked.

"I'm going to escort you as my prisoner," Kylo answered, "They will take us to a ship. Once on board, I will take you wherever you want to go."

"A truce then?"

"A truce."

Rey could not deny the longing that passed through her. After everything that has passed between them, she had hoped Kylo Ren might be willing to turn to the Light. Certainly, she had become aware that inside, past his dark exterior, there was more. The truth was, Kylo Ren was a lonely man, looking for belonging and instead settling for power.

Together, they had found a sort of belonging. She had hoped it would be enough, but it wasn't. Kylo battled still with self-loathing, with coming to terms with the things he had done. He had tried to turn himself into a monster, and when he had not succeeded, he had only tried harder.

The speeder began to slow, and Rey realized they were nearing the end. She looked at him once more. She wanted to remember him as the man he had been to her over the last couple of days, over the weeks in their Force Bond, and in the throne room when they had killed Snoke. Her eyes traced his scar, and she thought of the day she had given it to him. From the start, there had been something between them, something beyond the obvious adversarial relationship.

 _Don't be afraid. I feel it too._

He turned and met her eyes. She saw in them the vulnerability that she had grown to know, to recognize even when he tried to hide it. His eyes traced her face, and she realized that he was trying to remember her too.

 _Join me. Please..._

They climbed out of the speeder and stood across from each other. She memorized how tall he was, his black hair, his dark eyes.

"Stay behind me," he said softly. He held out his hand, and she realized he was asking for her lightsaber. She remembered, in the throne room, she had thrown it to him without a second thought. She extended her arm.

He took the lightsaber from her gently. He held it in his palm for a moment, as if reconsidering. But she was to be his prisoner, and prisoners couldn't have weapons. Briskly, he attached it to his belt opposite his own.

She watched him, as he replaced his metaphorical mask. He straightened, his eyes hardened, and suddenly he was the Supreme Leader Kylo Ren. No longer was there a trace of Ben Solo in his eyes. The transformation made her uncomfortable. It reminded her that the man she had come to like was not a good man at all.

He started off towards the fuel station with wide, determined strides. She hesitated only a moment before she followed. In a moment of fear, it took all of her strength not to demand her lightsaber. Instead, her hands curled into fists. She felt at a disadvantage. Despite it all, she didn't quite trust him. He could turn on her at any second.

As they strolled through the trees, the fuel station started to come into view. There were a few soldiers outside, and at first, they didn't notice the pair. Kylo Ren continued to stride forward confidently.

One of the First Order soldiers caught sight of them emerging from the trees. He started shouting, but Rey could not understand his words. Something wasn't right.

He raised a blaster and aimed straight at Kylo Ren.

Even Ren was caught off-guard. His fingers fumbled, just for a second, as he reached for his saber. The red blade ignited just in time as the first shot discharge from the blaster. Rey for a moment was afraid.

And then Kylo threw her saber to her.

There were maybe only five soldiers, but they all opened fire. She and Ren parried shots as they moved in closer. The soldiers' shouts were still unintelligible. Rey could not understand. How could these First Order soldiers not recognize their Supreme Leader, even if they hadn't seen him in person?

The pair made quick work of the clumsy soldiers. This was nothing like the Praetorian Guard. Ren spared the last one. He seized him by the neck with the Force and lifted him off the ground.

"Do you not recognize your Supreme Leader?" Ren said, his voice harsh. Rey was immediately reminded of his modulated voice when he had worn the mask, only this was more unsettling because it came from his throat alone. "I may not have visited your fuel station before, but that is no excuse."

The man struggled to draw breath. He choked and sputtered, but did not speak. Rey watched, paralyzed. She could not decide what she felt, watching him.

"Speak," ordered Kylo Ren, and even Rey could not suppress a shudder.

"Armitage Hux is the Supreme Leader now," the soldier managed, his voice strangled by Ren's phantom grip. "You were supposed to be dead." His face reddened as Ren squeezed harder.

"I'm not dead, as you can plainly see." Ren's voice this time was colored with sarcasm and cool patience.

"Hux ordered an investigation," choked the soldier. "He found out that you killed Snoke." The soldier's eyes turned uneasily to fall on Rey. "He said you were colluding with the Jedi."

Ren let go. The soldier crumpled to the ground, gasping for air. Ren turned, looking out into the trees. The soldier spoke once more, rubbing his throat. "You're a traitor."

Kylo Ren's face was calm as he turned back to the soldier. He raised his saber, the flickering red glow illuminating the man's face. Rey watched, knowing what was next.

Ren pressed his blade through the man's chest. A scream rent the air, and then silence fell over them like a blanket.

Kylo Ren did not look at Rey. He withdrew the saber from the dead soldier, and the body slumped to the ground. For a moment, he looked at the hilt of his saber. Then, he pressed forward.

Inside the fuel station, a few more soldiers appeared. Ren dispatched those quickly. He made his way determinedly to the command center. He swept to the main computer, deactivating his saber. He leaned on the console as he keyed in a few commands. Rey could not see his face. A red glow outlined him like a halo.

Rey could not see what he read on the screen. She could, however, feel his rage building. She stood, in the entry to the command room, waiting.

Again, he ignited his lightsaber. His rage swelled. Rey watched, without fear, as he slashed molten wounds in every computer and console in the command room. Sparks floated around him like stars as his rage took hold of him. The red light flickered, only to be overtaken by a yellow-orange glow as the metal melted beneath his blade. He made no sound. There was only the slashing of his saber and the electronic crackle of the dying computers.

And then it was over. He stood, blade in hand, looking at his destruction. His face was the face of a broken man.

"A traitor," he stated dully.

Rey said nothing.

"I gave the First Order everything I had," he said, frustration building in his tone. "I devoted my life to them."

Rey took a step forward. He looked up at her, anguish in his eyes. She ignored the catch of her breath in her throat and took another step forward. She knew, somehow, that he wouldn't hurt her.

"And now it's yours again," she said.

His eyes flashed to hers. He was afraid, he was hurt, he was lost. "I devoted my _entire life_ to the First Order. Everything I've done, I've done for them. How could they abandon me so easily?"

She felt his pain. It sparked through the bond like lightning. He was a swirling hurricane of loneliness, betrayal, and loss.

"It's a new beginning, Ben. Take back what you gave them. Use it for yourself." Her voice was calm and even, a stark contrast to her pounding heart.

He cast his eyes downward. "It's too late for me. I'm too far down this path." She could feel his mind replaying all of his mistakes. Most significantly, she could see Han Solo's face as Kylo Ren killed him.

"You're not too far, Ben. We've all made mistakes. We all have regrets," Rey said, her voice quavering. She watched him as he deactivated his lightsaber. He crumpled to his knees, amidst the product of his rage.

"I'm a monster. No one could forgive me for what I've done. I'm too far down this path." Rey could see a single tear coursing down his cheek. She could feel his regret for everything he had done.

"You're never too far." Rey watched him, her heart breaking. Before she realized it, his words rose in her throat. "Let the past die. Kill it, if you have to."

He looked up at her, surprised to hear her quoting his own words back to him. They stared at each other for a long moment.

"Leia could never forgive me. Not after what I've done." He couldn't even dare to speak the deed aloud, even as, again, Rey watched the life fade from Han Solo's eyes as his body tumbled off the walkway. Ben felt his own blade in his chest, and a jolt where Chewbacca's blast had caught him in the side.

"Maybe not," Rey said. "But she's your mother, and she loves you." Rey felt her own eyes filling with tears. This was the culmination of everything she had felt since their first bond over the Force. "She wants you back, Ben."

He couldn't look at her. He clasped his side with white knuckles, the blaster bolt ripping through him anew.

"Chewbacca could have killed you, you know," she said softly, her eyes on his side. "He had a clear shot. He didn't because he meant not to. I don't know if he promised Han, or Leia, or if it was his own love for you that stayed his aim. You said you would have killed me if you had intended to. Chewie would say the same."

The destroyed command room around them seemed like a metaphor for his soul. He too was broken. He had sought power, he had fought for it, killed for it, and it had been ripped away from him. Despite his machinations to make himself less than human, to kill his sentimentality, always it swirled around him like a heavy fog. Was it worth fighting anymore? Obviously, he was not strong enough to overcome it.

Slowly, he rose to his feet. "Even if a Leia accepted me, the rest of the Resistance wouldn't." He looked at her, yearning in his eyes. "You would stride back into the Resistance only to be shunned with me at your side."

"It would be a hard road, Ben. I will not lie. Most would not trust you right away. But in the Resistance, we are all not shiny and new. We've all made mistakes. We've killed people too." Rey was ashamed to admit what she was about to say out loud. His tantrum, destroying the computer, was familiar to her. "I felt that rage too, Ben. I've wanted to act on it."

"But you didn't," he challenged darkly. "That's the difference between you and me."

"Maybe so," Rey admitted. "But Snoke manipulated you, encouraged you to be overtaken by rage. You can learn how to control it; after all, you've learned so much else."

He considered her. She could feel his conflict, deeper than any of his wounds. This was the closest he had ever been to turning, she could feel it. Never before had he thought that the Resistance could ever accept him. And she could feel, hovering above it all, his desire to be with her. She couldn't make sense of it, but she felt it just the same.

"I don't deserve their forgiveness," he said. His tears dried, and his face was the emotionless mask once again. "I don't deserve their acceptance."

He closed the distance between them, ending up so close she could feel his warmth. She breathed in the smell of him, wondering if it was for the last time. She felt the cool metal of her saber hilt in her hand.

"I don't deserve _you_." His voice broke, only slightly. He cupped her cheek with his gloved hand. She leaned into his hand, the tears finally spilling from her eyes.

"You only have three choices here, Ben. You join me and come back to the Resistance, you go back to the First Order and get killed, or you run."

She took a deep breath. "Ben, join me, please."

She closed her eyes. She couldn't bear to look at him anymore, knowing it might be the last time. "Together, Ben, we could start a new Jedi Order: one that was not so focused on the Light vs. the Dark. We could encourage our pupils to learn, to question. We would not hide the Dark from them. We would teach them and show them the power that comes from both. Above all else, we would teach them how to channel emotion and passion to strength and balance."

She could feel her own pull on him. She could also feel that it wasn't enough.

His voice was quiet when he spoke. "I will take you to the Resistance."

"But you will not join me," Rey finished for him.

When he did not speak, Rey opened her eyes. He could not look at her. His hand fell from her cheek. She could feel him slipping away from her, and like it was mirroring them, the Force-bond faded.

"Ben, I think I—"

"Don't," he stopped her. He knew what she was going to say, and he couldn't bear to hear it.

She assented, her voice trailing off. She stepped back from him. The connection between them was broken. It seemed an eternity before either spoke again.

"We need to find a ship," he said. She nodded. She hooked her lightsaber back onto her belt, and he did the same.

They left the command room smoldering, embers and metal still glowing yellow in the dark. Rey felt like she was leaving a piece of her heart there, even if she could not figure out why she felt that way. Something had changed, before, and now it had changed again. She and Kylo Ren walked side by side, and yet their relationship had shifted again.

Perhaps, Rey considered, they were on equal ground at last. She had rejected his proposal once, and now he had rejected hers. They both desired the other, but once again, they pushed each other away. Rey wondered what the point of all of this was. Once again, she returned to the Resistance, alone.

The words they once spoke echoed that in her mind again.

 _You're not alone._

 _Neither are you._

And yet here they were, alone again.

* * *

General Leia Organa watched the citizens of Aronat Minor die below her. The Resistance fleet was trapped, locked in battle with the First Order ships, powerless to stop the destruction. She hovered next to the readout of her fighter pilots, watching the blinking red Xs with rising nausea.

Eight Star Destroyers sulked ominously above them, shadowed by the massive Dreadnought. The _Supremacy II_ was so large against the battle it seemed a starless sliver of sky rather than a ship.

She stepped forward, swallowing back the bitter bile. "Hail the _Supremacy II_. I want to speak to Supreme Leader Hux."

Her bridge crew hesitated, eyeing her with disbelief. Leia waited a moment, and then urged them again. "Go on!"

The communications officer keyed in the command, and everyone slowly turned back to their stations. Connix was the last left staring at Leia, as they awaited the First Order's response.

Hux's voice broke the silence, and Leia's first thought was that everyone on the bridge was holding their breath. "Ah, General Organa. At last, we speak."

Leia gathered her bravado. "Supreme Leader Hux, I presume. Did you feel like you just had to show off your new ship?"

"General, you are no smarter than your cocky pilots, are you?" Leia waited, patiently. "Tell me, General Organa, what is it that you want? Surely, you have not contacted me just to mock our attack."

Leia steeled herself for her request. "No, I'm afraid not. I like to think I'm smarter than my cocky pilots, although maybe that's not always the case." She paused, deciding she could test his patience a little. "I would like to negotiate with you, Supreme Leader. We are outgunned in this fight, and I think we both know that Aronat Minor is just a pawn in your game."

"I am not too interested in negotiating aside from your surrender," Hux answered. "You have shown your hand in admitting your weakness."

Leia felt the eyes of her crew watching her, but she stared carefully ahead at the massive, loathsome ship. "Be that as it may, Hux," she said, deliberately omitting his title, "I am not interested in surrender. However, if you have other terms, I am willing to listen."

Leia would not have admitted it to Poe, but she had known just as he had that this was a trap for one specific outcome. Poe, she knew, suspected the outcome, but did not see it as clearly as she did. Leia knew that Hux had designed this entire battle for one reason, and one reason alone: to kill her. She had seen her death coming for years, in a nebulous and uncertain future, but as it had drawn closer, it had gained clarity.

"It seems you are not in a position to decide if you are willing to listen," Hux said, his voice terse.

She did not answer, letting him think about it. The silence stretched on to what seemed like an eternity. She hoped her crew had remembered to breathe again.

"I will meet with you," Hux said sharply, "to negotiate the terms of your surrender. But it will be in person, on neutral ground."

"I expected no less," Leia said, and relief washed over her. "In the meantime, can we at least agree on a ceasefire?"

Hux hesitated, presumably to make her squirm as she had just done to him. She focused on the Force, feeling Ben and Rey alive in the distance, feeling Luke's soothing presence, and feeling the future balance, just out of reach.

The barrage on the planet's surface tapered. Leia watched until the shots stopped. "Call back the squadrons," she ordered softly.

The battlefield was still. Ships floated like ghosts in the sky, and the Resistance fighters began to disengage and return to the space around the _Echo of Hope_ and the _Luke Skywalker._

Hux's voice returned again over the commlink. "You will receive a transmission with the time and coordinates of our meeting, General Organa. You may bring two emissaries with you for protection."

"Thank you, Supreme Leader," she said and cut off the transmission.

Connix's voice was timid when she broke the silence. "Commander Dameron has landed in the hangar bay, General. He is…requesting an audience."

Leia had expected no less. "I'll meet him in my private lounge," she answered.

One ridiculous thought jumped to the forefront of her mind: compared to the impending conversation with Poe, the contact with Hux had been simple.


	14. Chapter 14

"How dare you!?" Poe demanded, bursting into her lounge.

Leia watched him calmly from her seat behind the table. Poe had not bothered to take off his flight suit and carried his helmet tucked under his arm. He could not hide the frustration coursing through his veins. His very posture belied it.

"If you go down to that planet, he will kill you!"

Leia crossed her arms. She watched him with poorly veiled amusement. "Are you done?"

Poe stopped, putting his helmet on the table. He let out his breath in a rush. "Yes. I'm done."

"Poe, you've seen it yourself. We cannot win this."

Poe sighed. He had seen it for himself. Even their cloud of light fighters could not win against eight Star Destroyers and the _Supremacy II_. "We just haven't figured out our plan yet," he said, even though he didn't believe the words himself. "There's got to be a weakness, something we can take out, so we can turn the tides."

"Poe, I've admired you for a long time." Leia watched his posture soften. His shoulders relaxed, and he leaned on the table toward her. "I've been training you, you know."

There was pain in his eyes, and he still could not look at her. "I know, but it's not time yet," he pleaded in a broken whisper. "Maybe it never will be. Maybe the Resistance will win out long before you need a successor."

"I've seen it, Poe. The Force shows me things, sometimes in glimpses, and sometimes in living color. There's no avoiding it. Hux is going to kill me."

Poe seemed to crumple, his head dropping, his shoulders rolling forward. "What if you just went home, Leia? What if you never met Hux?"

Leia had seen Poe before, back in the Rebel Alliance a hundred times. Poe reminded her of Han, of Luke, of many heroes before him. But Poe, he had been raised in this. He was one of the rebel children, who had been raised on the stories of rebel heroes, but who had never seen the destruction. He had to learn the lessons of loss before he had been fit to succeed her. Now, she wondered if he had seen too much.

Leia sighed. "Why postpone the inevitable? If not now, tomorrow. If not tomorrow, the day after. What is to be gained from waiting?"

Poe's voice trembled as he spoke. "I can't lose you. We can't lose you."

"Come with me, Poe. Be one of my emissaries. If anyone can save me, it's you."

"I miss Rey," Poe whispered. "She could save you."

Leia smiled, but there was sadness in her eyes. "Rey is working to save someone else."

It took Poe a moment to realize what she meant. "Kylo Ren?" he asked, and he couldn't quite keep the disgust from his voice.

"Ben Solo," Leia reminded gently. "My son."

Poe bit his lip, measuring what to say. It was clear on his face that he would prefer Leia live and her son die. Still, his voice was softer when he spoke again: "Do you think she'll be successful?"

"I don't know," Leia admitted. "But I hope so."

* * *

They boarded the ship in stony silence. Rey went immediately to the cockpit, switching on the controls. Ren followed her, warming up the engines. Rey slid into the pilot's chair, checking the display, the controls.

"Where exactly is the Resistance located?" He asked her, running his own pre-flight checks.

Rey didn't look at him, instead reaching above her head and switching on the navigation system. "I don't know."

Kylo scoffed. "You don't know?"

"We've been a little more nomadic since the First Order destroyed our base and our flagship."

He settled back into the copilot's chair, watching her. "So how do you suggest we find them?"

She reached out in front of her and turned on the communication system. "Simple," she said, "I ask them."

* * *

Finn and Poe waited in the hangar bay for General Organa. A small shuttle waited to carry them to the rendezvous point. They had been chosen as Leia's two emissaries for the trip to the planet. Finn clutched his blaster uneasily, beads of sweat becoming apparent on his brow. BB-8 hovered at Poe's feet, whistling occasionally with nervous energy.

"Why did she choose me?" Finn asked no one in particular.

Poe clapped him on the shoulder. "Because we're good, buddy. And because she's trying to make a statement."

"And what statement is that?"

"I don't know. Something about a Stormtrooper and an overconfident pilot."

"That sounds like the opening to a joke," Finn said nervously.

Poe laughed, despite himself. "Maybe it is."

Threepio shuffled over to them, exuding his perpetual worry. "I don't think this is a good idea. I know you don't like to know the odds, but suffice it to say, they aren't good."

"I agree with you for once, Threepio," Poe said. "If it were up to me, we wouldn't be doing this at all."

General Organa strode into the hangar bay, interrupting their conversation. She looked elegant and firm as always, her hair coifed and her uniform sharp. Every eye in the hangar was fixed on her. Her leadership was so natural, so effortless, it didn't take a word.

She stopped in front of the two of them, greeting them wordlessly. "Are you ready, boys?"

Finn and Poe looked at each other. They each saw uncertainty in the other's eyes. Finally, Poe spoke: "Ready if you are."

* * *

Rey opened the communication channel and keyed in the code for the Resistance. She waited, unsure how long it would take them to answer. The silence in the cockpit was palpable. She could feel Kylo Ren's eyes on her.

Suddenly, the channel connected. "Lieutenant Connix?" Rey said, not waiting for a greeting.

"Who is speaking?" It was Lieutenant Connix's voice, and she sounded in on-edge.

"It's Rey." She wondered what Poe had told them of her crash. Would they believe it was her?

"Rey!" There was elation in her voice. "Is it really you?"

"Yes, it's me. Couldn't get rid of me that easily," she said, attempting to keep her tone light.

"We thought you were dead! Poe said you crashed."

"I did crash, but I survived. I'm stranded out here," she said. "Where can I meet you?

Connix's hesitation was too long to be natural. "Now might not be a good time," she said carefully.

"What's happening?" Rey said, her anxiety finally leeching into her tone.

For a moment, she almost had forgotten Kylo Ren sitting next to her. She realized he was just as in the dark as she was, no longer at the head of the First Order. His own uneasiness was apparent to her.

"The First Order is attacking Aronat Minor. They're just killing civilians, I think to make a point." Connix, a normally steady person, sounded clearly unsettled. "Rey, Leia is going down to the planet to negotiate with Hux. She's taking Poe and Finn with her."

Rey's mouth had gone dry. She swallowed thickly. Kylo seemed to vibrate with energy beside her. He spoke before he could stop himself.

"He'll kill her." He could not keep the edge of panic from his voice.

"Who is that?" Connix said sharply.

Rey looked at him with reprimand in her eyes. He did not see her; his eyes were wild with desperation, even as the rest of his face did not change. Rey spoke, "I had to buy passage on a ship. That's the pilot." She willed him to stay calm, to stay quiet. "He is with the Resistance, a sympathizer. But he's right. Hux will kill her, given the chance. She can't meet with him."

"Poe tried to stop her. We all did. She sees no other way."

Rey's heart was racing. "Can you stall her? Until I get there?"

Rey knew from the length of the pause that they were already too late. "Her shuttle has already left," Connix answered.

Rey looked over at Kylo Ren again and was surprised to see the eyes of Ben Solo staring back at her. For the first time since she had turned his mind probe back on him on his ship, so many weeks ago, he was afraid.

"Connix, we will get to you as fast as we can. Protect Leia, if you can."

"Rey," Connix said, restrained urgency in her tone, "hurry."

* * *

Aronat Minor was stiflingly humid. The heat from the planet's sun reflected off the pavement of the landing pad and seemed magnified on Poe's face. He squinted, waiting for his eyes to adjust to the bright sunlight after the dark shuttle. Hux and two black-clad First Order soldiers waited for them on the landing pad.

Hux appraised them with a sneer. "Commander Dameron, is it? And FN-2187. Some emissaries, General Organa." Hux's sarcasm was biting.

"I thought you might like them," Leia said. Unlike the rest of them, she didn't seem affected by the sun or the heat.

They strode forward until they were face to face with their First Order counterparts. They stood in silence, neither party willing to speak first.

Poe was in no mood to humor a power play. "I assume we're going somewhere out of this heat. Or are we just going to negotiate here?"

Hux didn't even glance at him. "One of your cocky pilots, I see."

"Well, you seem to like them so much..."

Finally, Hux seemed to tire of his game. "If you'll follow me."

He pivoted on his heels, taking off briskly towards a nearby building. Poe followed, matching his pace. Finn was a bit more hesitant, his eyes fixed on Hux's back. Leia was calmest of all; if you hadn't known better, you might have thought she was going for a leisurely stroll with old friends.

Hux led them into the building, which was, from the looks of it, a diplomatic agency of some kind. A receptionist sat behind a desk in the foyer, watching them with nervous eyes. She was human, but the other figure, watching from a doorway, was not. Neither spoke, but their eyes followed them as they passed.

Hux led them to a private conference room. The six of them stepped inside, and one of the First Order soldiers shut the door behind them. Hux casually took a seat at the conference table and gestured to the others. General Organa sat without hesitation. Poe and Finn looked at each other, and then followed suit.

"Alright, Supreme Leader Hux, what are your terms?" Leia said.

* * *

Kylo Ren had said nothing since his untimely outburst. Together, wordlessly, they had keyed in the hyperspace calculations. Now, they flew silently, remarkably in tune with each other. In another life, they would have made perfect copilots.

His silence dared her to speak. Certainly, a thousand thoughts bubbled at her mind: he loved Leia, he was scared, and he wasn't ready to lose her. Leia was off-limits. Hux had overstepped his bounds. Every so often, Rey glanced over at him, and he was always staring ahead at the viewscreen.

Rey wished desperately for the Force to connect them. She needed to know what he was thinking. Maybe this changed nothing, or maybe this changed everything. Instead, she reached out through the Force to just feel Leia. Leia was calm, resolved. Rey's stomach twisted as she realized it reminded her of Luke, at the end.

Kylo glanced at her, and she wondered if he could hear her thoughts. His glance was fleeting, and a moment later he looked ahead again. The man sitting beside her she hardly recognized.

The Force decided all at once to grant her wish. She tumbled into his mind, where she saw what she dared not imagine: for a moment, his mind was all light. She was in the cockpit of his TIE silencer, aiming at the bridge of the _Raddus_ , finger on the trigger. All was still and it was as if she was looking into Leia's eyes. Rey's finger trembled, her lip quivered. She couldn't. Her finger fell away from the trigger. She didn't.

The door slammed shut again. She was alone.

He said nothing. She wondered if he had known she was there.

* * *

Poe was beginning to wonder if he overreacted. The negotiations were proceeding peacefully. Granted, Hux was demanding things that he knew the Resistance could not give. Leia was patient, countering every offer with one of her own. Finn continued to sweat, his brow shiny and his face pained.

"Supreme Leader, I think you know as well as I that we are going to get nowhere in the scheme of the war at large," Leia said, her brown eyes flashing even as the rest of her face remained impassive.

"Really?" he said, raising an eyebrow. "Seems like I have you backed into a corner."

"Perhaps you are overconfident, Supreme Leader," Leia cautioned. "We can lose a battle without losing the war." Leia looked at him, her eyes hard. "Tell me, what are your terms?"

"Simple. Surrender."

Leia took a measured breath. "Counter offer: We withdraw from Aronat Minor, both of us. In exchange, we leave your food and medical supply ships alone."

"Weak offer, General. We can protect our supply ships, I think."

This time Leia raised an eyebrow. "Need I remind you that recently one of our attacks on your supply ships lost you your predecessor?"

"And you your Jedi," Hux snapped. He paused, regaining his composure. "But you have a fair point. I concede that."

"My offer stands. Admit you have little to gain from your attack on Aronat Minor. It hurts the First Order little to none to withdraw." Leia's voice was firm, commanding.

"So you still maintain that my attack here is only a lark, to annoy you perhaps?" Hux sounded like a petulant child compared to the patient Leia. Her years as a princess and senator served her well.

Poe's stomach twisted into knots. He had utter faith in Leia, but the more they danced around Hux's reason for the attack, the more a single word echoed in Poe's mind: assassination. He did his best to appear relaxed, unaffected, but his muscles were taut, his hand poised to snatch up his blaster. He stole occasional glances at Finn, who could not take his eyes off of the First Order men. Poe wondered what he was thinking, remembering. At least he had calmed some from the wild-eyed Stormtrooper who had helped him escape from the Destroyer. Finn now had the restraint to have his hand off of his blaster instead of clasped around the grip.

"No," Leia answered, her voice still even. "But I suspect your underlying motivation had more to do with this encounter than the attack itself."

Hux's eyes flashed, and Poe thought he recognized transient rage. "Ah. You think you have me figured out, do you?"

"Am I wrong?" Leia challenged.

Hux pursed his lips slightly. "No."

Poe felt his chest tighten. This time when he glanced at Finn, they made eye contact. Wordlessly, they came to the same conclusion. Poe sat forward in his chair, his eyes flicking to the soldiers next to Hux, ready to respond to any movement.

"I think we're done here," Poe said, measured caution and urgency in his tone.

He and Finn rose, defensive and tense in posture. Leia did not follow.

"What about my offer?" Leia said, ignoring Finn and Poe.

Hux glanced at the two men, and then met Leia's unwavering gaze. "What do I have to ensure your cooperation? Your word?"

"That isn't good enough?"

Hux stared at her for a long moment. Poe wondered how much longer he could stand the rising adrenaline in his blood without acting.

"General Organa, you had a long career as a politician. You know as well as I do that words mean nothing." He resumed his silence, daring her to speak. Leia was too practiced at negotiations, however, and did not falter.

"But," Hux resumed softly as if he had been merely considering her offer, "your name means something in this galaxy. Organa has become somewhat of a synonym for integrity, if not some other things... I accept your terms. We will withdraw."

Poe knew relief should wash over him. The negotiations were concluded. All they had left was to return to the _Luke Skywalker_ and jump to hyperspace as quickly as they could. And yet, his anxiety crescendoed. This was too easy.

Hux and Leia rose in unison. Hux's soldiers followed.

"I thought we could find an agreement," Leia answered, a subtle smile on her lips.

"Yes," he agreed. "And I hope soon we are negotiating again, your surrender, perhaps..."

Leia laughed slightly. "Perhaps yours."

Hux gestured for her to lead the way back to the landing pad. Poe interjected, praying his voice was even. "Maybe you should exit together."

Leia looked at him, undoubtedly recognizing the fear of loss in his eyes. She nodded once, conceding.

"Together it is."

She and Hux started out of the room, side-by-side. Poe and Finn looked at each other. They each fell beside one of the First Order soldiers. If their goal was to take out Leia from behind, they weren't going to have it easy.

The human receptionist was still in the lobby, watching nervously for a clue at what had passed in the conference room. Poe wondered if she had lost any loved ones in the destruction, or if she even knew. The other figure was gone from the doorway; the door was now closed.

They stepped out into the sun, and Poe scanned their surroundings for high points, hiding places. Their shuttle was at the end of the landing pad, waiting. Hux's was in the space to the left, armed guards positioned at the door.

Poe's heart was pounding. In less than a hundred yards they would be in the shuttle, safe.

Hux started towards his ship, his soldiers following. Finn and Poe jogged forward, flanking her. They needed to keep pace with the First Order representatives. They wouldn't blow up the landing pad as long as Hux was still on it.

One hundred yards had never seemed so far. Poe heard the engines of the shuttles roar to life, thankful for once that he was not the pilot.

Long, determined strides brought them forward. The sun beat down on them like a spotlight. They were exposed, so exposed.

Poe felt a prickle on the back of his neck as his hairs stood on end. He turned, too slow.

Leia fell to the ground with a heavy thud.


	15. Chapter 15

The stars streaked around them, looking more like a projection than reality. Rey flew mechanically, trying not to succumb to the worry gnawing at her. Ren's tension radiated palpably throughout the cockpit. She had the irrational desire to hold him, to comfort him, but was afraid he would snap with rage.

He stared ahead, only glancing down to adjust his controls. His face remained impassive, inscrutable. Her heart ached for him, and at the thought of losing Leia. Truthfully, Rey had come to regard Leia like a mother, and she could feel the acute pain of loneliness again at even the thought of losing her.

The Force sent a wave through her like a ghost.

A breath tore from her throat raggedly. She felt as if she had been punched in the gut. Numbness prickled through her with icy fingers, and the thought finally solidified into words.

Leia.

She realized Ben must have felt it too. She turned to him, feeling as if she was stuck in slow motion. His hands had fallen from the controls, and she saw emptiness in his eyes. Tentatively, she reached out to place a hand on his knee.

After a long moment, her hand fell away, and he stood silently, walking away.

Rey felt separated from her body, as if she were watching the half-empty cockpit from far away. Strangely, she couldn't feel the sadness she expected, that she wanted. She felt disconnected, and her heartbeat rattled in an empty chest.

Woodenly, she dropped the ship out of Hyperspace. The streaks resolved to dots, and the whine of the ship's engines fell away to a low hum. She heard her breath, her heartbeat, the white noise of her instrumentation.

She couldn't feel Ben. He had closed himself off from the Force. She locked the ship's position, rising onto gelatinous legs. She walked robotically out of the cockpit, wandering through the small ship's corridor.

She found him easily. He was in the quarters, sitting on the floor, his back against the sleeping platform. He hugged his knees to his chest, his head tucked into his arms.

She crouched down, joining him on the floor. She draped her arm around him, and when he did not react, she pulled herself closer, trying to wrap her small frame around him. He did not say anything, but he also did not push her away.

The rise and fall of his chest and shoulders soothed her. She closed her eyes. His shoulders shuddered slightly, and then his breath was even again.

* * *

Poe was paralyzed, caught in an endless loop of the last 10 seconds. He walked forward, arm on Leia's shoulders. His neck prickled as a bolt of energy passed. Leia dropped, his arm slung around empty air. He couldn't breathe.

Again. He walked. Energy. Leia dropped.

Again. Again.

The trance broke, like a wire snapping. Time resumed in fast forward. Poe fell to his knees, his fingers automatically finding a pulse point on Leia's wrist. Nothing, but he expected that. Snipers shot to kill.

Finn stood, dumbfounded. "Poe?"

Poe couldn't say it out loud. He shook his head. He felt dizzy. He knew this was going to happen; so did she. But he couldn't believe it. Nausea swirled in his stomach.

His body acted without him. He gathered her into his arms and rose to his feet. As if on autopilot, he started towards the shuttle.

He walked up the ramp to the medical bay and laid her on the cot. He heard Finn yelling at the pilot to take off. Suddenly, Finn was behind him, and Poe realized he was standing there, staring, numb.

"How did this happen?" Poe realized he had spoken only after he heard his voice aloud.

Finn's tongue sounded thick. "The First Order doesn't hire snipers."

"Hux does."

Finn collapsed into a chair. Poe couldn't feel his legs.

"I saw this coming," Poe said. His mind moved slowly, like molasses. He couldn't process anything.

It didn't take long for them to reach the Luke Skywalker. Poe felt like he wanted to vomit. How could he face everyone, when he had failed them? Failed her...

He heard the hangar door close, and the shuttle shuddered as it landed. The shuttle door lowered.

Poe knew everyone deserved to know. That was the only thing that moved him out of the medical bay to the ramp.

He faced the gathered crowd. His mouth was dry, and he tasted bile in the back of his throat.

"Hux agreed to withdraw his attack in exchange for a cease-fire on his supply shipments," Poe said, still struggling with the idea of speaking the bad news aloud. Something on his face stopped the celebration, however.

He looked out on the gathered Resistance. Before him were pilots he knew, his friends, officers, Rose. They looked at him expectantly, and he recognized trepidation, dread, and sorrow in their gazes. Even though many of their number remained in light fighters, aboard the _Echo of Hope_ , the gathered crowd seemed too great in number. He couldn't tell them. He couldn't do this.

It wasn't fair. Leia shouldn't have died. Rey should be here. They should know she still lived. And yet, Poe was caught here, staring dry-mouthed at a crowd full of cautious hope.

Poe felt a person behind him. Finn's presence gave him some strength. "General Organa was assassinated following the negotiations." Poe immediately regretted the bluntness of his words as he looked into the eyes before him.

No one made a sound. Poe's knees wobbled, and he wondered if he could stand the silence. Finn laid a hand on his shoulder, and he felt steadier.

"She would not want us to waste time mourning her," Poe said, and he didn't know where he found the strength to keep speaking. "She would want us to honor her legacy by continuing the fight."

Some of the gathered crowd glanced around at each other. Poe saw tears on some of the faces, shock on others. Rose looked past him, and Poe wondered what wordless conversation she was having with Finn.

"General Organa was a great leader, and the symbol of the Resistance throughout the galaxy. We owe it to her to continue on, stalwart.

"She saved Aronat Minor," Poe said, "and if we continue to honor General Leia Organa in everything we do, we can save the galaxy in her name."

Poe held his stare out over the crowd for a moment, and then he dropped his head. Finn's hand fell from his shoulder, and there was an unspoken moment of silence in the bay.

"Where to, Commander Dameron?" a voice asked in the crowd.

He raised his head, but the speaker did not identify herself. A murmur passed through the crowd, and he realized they were looking to him for direction. He remembered Leia's words: _I've been training you, you know_.

He had been so eager for leadership when Holdo had been promoted in his stead. He felt as if years had passed since that moment. He was so much older now. Now, the mantle was heavy, burdensome.

"We return to Vorill Four," Poe said, attempting to convey confidence where he felt none. "We have infrastructure there, and, as of yet, the First Order has not found our base."

The crowd started to disperse, talking in low voices. Poe's shoulders slumped as his false confidence dissipated. He felt deflated, lost. Rose walked up the ramp to join them, wrapping her arm around Finn.

"Can I see her?" Rose asked softly.

Poe sighed. He wasn't ready to see Leia again, to remind himself of the finality of her death. It was easier to pretend she was just away when he wasn't faced with the sight of her, no light in her eyes.

He and Finn led the way, nonetheless. The short walk to the medical bay seemed to stretch before them and shrink simultaneously. Poe's perception was meaningless, broken.

They rounded the corner and were faced with the image of an emptycot. On the blanket, arranged as if she had been lifted out of it, was Leia's overcoat.

* * *

Supreme Leader Armitage Hux smiled smugly from his perch atop the throne on _Supremacy II_. He had modeled it after Snoke's intimidating hall, and he loved the way it felt to watch his subordinates walk the long stretch from the door to speak to him. He loved the way it made them sweat in nervous anticipation, especially when he regarded them impatiently, as if they were taking too long to get to him.

The only thing that could make it better, he thought, was if Kylo Ren himself was forced to make the long walk and kneel at his feet, like he did to Snoke. Hux usually cared little about the Force, but he would love to have it, if only for a moment, to choke Kylo Ren by his smug, entitled neck.

Hux took a deep, steadying breath as rage rippled through him. Now was not the time for rage, it was the time for celebration. His plan had succeeded. He didn't have to choke Kylo Ren. He had just cleaved his soul in half.

His only regret was that he didn't see the moment General Leia Organa had been killed. He couldn't risk watching for it, couldn't risk alerting Leia's "emissaries" to look for an impending attack.

It had been almost as satisfying when Poe had looked around frantically for a shooter, just as they were leaving the building. He had seen it coming, had to make that walk with a pounding heart, only to have her killed mere feet from the safety of the shuttle.

Of course, Hux couldn't take credit for any of his perfect design. Instead, it was announced that a radical unassociated with the First Order had carried out the assassination. An unaffiliated media outlet on Aronat Minor had taken care of that, for a large and discreet price. The First Order had agreed to peaceful negotiations, after all.

Not seeing Leia die was not his only regret, he admitted. He would have done anything to see Kylo Ren's face the moment he learned of Leia's death. If the universe had any justice, Ren's constant connection with the Force had already delivered the blow in tactless and swift certainty. Somewhere the sniveling boy was reduced to a simpering child, and he would have to derive his satisfaction from imagining it, for now.

* * *

Rey awoke on the sleeping platform, disoriented. She didn't remember falling asleep, and most definitely had not climbed up onto the mattress. Most unsettlingly, Ben was gone from the room. She could still feel the echo of his form where it had been pressed against her. How long had they sat there on the floor before she had fallen asleep? Hours?

She rose from the bed quietly and slipped over to the doorway. She peered around the corner in the dark, and could barely see into the cockpit from his position down the corridor. He was sitting in the pilot's chair, staring at the stars. They remained motionless, stars twinkling against the blackness.

Finally, grief washed over her. Her heart was heavy, dull in her chest. She ached looking at him. She ached remembering Leia's kind eyes, soft touch.

He still closed himself from the Force. Her loneliness seemed even more profound without him beside her; she hadn't realized how much she had been aware of his presence, even when they were not connected to each other's thoughts or when they were not having their vision-conversations. She stared at his silhouette silently, and in that moment she felt they were farther away from each other than when they were on opposite sides of the galaxy.

"The Resistance contacted us," he said, startling her. He hadn't turned or showed any sign that he knew she was watching him. "They are returning to Vorill Four."

She couldn't find her voice. That seemed so unimportant now.

"Can you sleep?" he asked.

She considered for a moment. "I don't know."

"Me neither," he answered.

A long moment passed. Rey felt as if her heart was being torn in two, in agonizing slow motion. The reality of Leia's death was falling over her in a curtain, but, frustratingly, her eyes remained dry. She thought if maybe she could cry, the pain would wane, if only for a moment.

He surprised her when he spoke again. "Do you mind if I'm alone now? It won't be forever."

Rey bit her lip. She knew there was nothing for her to do, but she would have given anything to comfort him, to take away some of his pain, even if it meant feeling more herself.

"No," she answered, her voice barely above a whisper. She watched him for another second before slipping back into the quarters. The automatic door slid shut after a moment, and she backed up blindly until her knees buckled against the edge of the bed.

She fell onto the mattress again, and a sob wracked her without warning. She curled up on her side, allowing the tears to take her violently, but only for a minute or two.

She took a deep breath and turned over. It had felt a little better to cry. Her hands grasped a pillow tightly and pulled it over to her chest. She stared at the wall in the darkness, for minutes or for hours, before merciful sleep took her.


	16. Chapter 16

She woke, her chest hollow. She didn't open her eyes, pulling her pillow tighter to her chest to smother the heartache. Another shuddering sob passed through her, but again it only lasted a minute or two.

She rose, adjusting her clothes. She headed into the 'fresher. Her reflection in the mirror didn't surprise her. Her eyes were red, puffy. Strands of hair clung to her face. She looked tired, remarkably so. The bruises from the crash were turning from purple to yellow on her face and her shoulders. A healing gash split her forehead on the right from her hairline to her eyebrow.

She took her hair down. The 'fresher only had a sonic shower, rather than water, but she was used to the feel of that from her time on Jakku. Water was scarce there. The first time she had seen a water shower, she had felt indignant from the waste, the excess.

She stripped and stepped into the sonic, feeling the dirt fall from her skin, her hair. She looked down at her body at the yellow-purple blooms, the scratches, the wounds from the crash. They were improving, if slowly.

Sonic showers weren't as enticing as water showers. In the water showers, she always wanted to stick around, linger in the warmth. In the sonic, when she was clean, she was done. She stepped out, her hair soft on her shoulders.

Rey was reluctant to put on dirty clothes again after showering, but she didn't want to don a First Order uniform. Instead, she used a trick she had learned on Jakku: the sonic shower would get clothes clean-ish. It wasn't as good as a washer, but it was better than nothing.

Once she was dressed, she pulled her hair back out of her face again. Her reflection was much improved and her eyes much less puffy. She stepped back out into the sleeping quarters and sat on the corner of the bed, numb.

A minute or so later, there was a gentle knock on the door.

"Come in," she said.

The door opened, and Ben stepped through it. He looked at her, and the expression on his face was one she had never seen before. She wondered if she should be afraid, but she wasn't.

"I didn't want to wake you," he murmured. A pause. "I heard the sonic."

She waited, feeling his thoughts forming into words. When they were connected with the Force, she could sometimes get a sense of what he was going to say. This time, she was only sure he was building to say something.

"Rey, what were you going to say, on the planetoid, before I stopped you?" he asked. There was a new intensity about him, different than his normal self.

Shame and trepidation washed over her. She had been so much braver then, in that moment, when the fear of losing him had overwhelmed her. Now, when they were alone and calm, she didn't know if she had the courage.

She swallowed. "Ben, I think I—" Her heart pounded. Could she say it? "—love you."

The second that followed those words was perhaps the longest of her life. She knew so firmly that it was true that she felt a sense of peace now that she had spoken it aloud. However, waiting for his response was a hellish cliffhanger.

He did not speak, but suddenly their Force-bond reopened in full. His grief filled her first, for a moment making it unbearable. Mourning for Leia and, to her surprise, for Han drowned him in pain and regret. The torment of killing his fellow students in Luke's temple followed him like a black cloud. Every impulsive act cut him in two, and yet each decision forced him further along the path to darkness.

Underneath the grief, though, lay something she had never been allowed to feel before. His love for her was warm and strong. It had been the forefront of his emotional compass since they had touched hands in the hut on Ahch-To.

His thoughts rushed through her, and she struggled to say afloat. For a moment, it overwhelmed her and she lost track of herself.

But then, one thought stopped her dead in her tracks.

"Ben, where are we?"

* * *

He had never thought she could love him too.

Sure, he had hoped that their connection had inspired her not to hate him. He had hoped their bond would demonstrate that his path to the Dark side was not paved with evil but with agony and impulse and mistakes.

He couldn't pinpoint the moment he had fallen in love with her, but he realized his feelings when she had reached out to take his hand. She rent his heart in two when she denied his pleading in the Throne Room. He thought that was the last time he would see her in that way. And yet his love continued.

His grief over his mother's death induced in him some deep introspection. The First Order had rejected him, thrown him away like garbage. He had fought tooth and nail to stay on the Dark side, and it rejected him. He had betrayed the Light at every turn, and yet it welcomed him still.

He had searched forever for belonging, but in all the wrong places.

He would follow Rey anywhere. That was the fundamental truth. He had known on the planetoid that if he heard her speak the words aloud, he would return with her to the Resistance. He thought if he could just get away from her, he would be able to regain his strength, his darkness, and his power.

None of that mattered anymore.

So long he had fought to let go of his sentimentality, of his past. Snoke had urged him to forget his parents, to kill them, to rise above the abandonment he had felt. The second he stopped loving them, Snoke promised, he would stop feeling the pain. It was true, he supposed, but also impossible. Even now that both of his parents were gone, he still wanted their love and attention. The only difference was that now it was unattainable.

Rey, though, loved him in spite of it all. How she could love someone who had done the things he had was beyond him. But, if she would have him, he was tired of fighting it.

Truthfully, he had known all along he would end up succumbing to the Light. Rey had just made it a gentler path.

He looked at her, wanting above all else to take her into his arms and never let go. She had asked a question, he remembered.

"Ben, where are we?"

He hesitated. "Vorill Four."

Her eyes flashed up to meet his, and he saw the unspoken question in them: Was he dropping her off, or joining her?

He swallowed. "Are you sure they won't kill me on sight?"

She bit her lip and shook her head. "I won't let them."

* * *

The entire Resistance had gathered on the landing pad for this moment. The word that Rey was back, was alive, had brought a surge of hope through the crowd. The word that she was landing on Vorill Four in mere minutes had been impossible to suppress, and the entire remaining Resistance had insisted on seeing the last Jedi back from the dead.

Poe began to hear the hum of an engine and was surprised to see a First Order shuttle approaching on the horizon. A whisper ran through the crowd as the familiar silhouette made everyone uneasy. He held up a hand to stop them from arming themselves.

"Rey was stranded on a First Order planetoid," he said to them, and to himself. "It only makes sense she'd arrive on a stolen ship."

The wind from the impending landing rippled around them. Poe looked at Finn and Rose, trying to hide his trepidation. Finn could not hide his excitement at Rey's return, and Rose clung to his hand with her usual enthusiasm.

The shuttle slowed as it approached the landing pad. Poe wondered what Rey was thinking as she saw the gathered crowd. He knew what it was like to face the Resistance when the bay door opened, and he only hoped she did not have similarly negative news to deliver.

A thought buzzed in Poe's mind. Leia had told him several times that Rey was with Kylo Ren, and that she thought Rey might be able to turn him. However, they had yet to hear any news from any source on Kylo Ren since the crash and his supposed death. Where was he? Was there a chance that he was on that shuttle? Was there a chance he had turned?

More sinisterly, Poe wondered, was there a chance he was manipulating Rey? What if she had turned instead, or what if he was holding her hostage and using her to get to the Resistance? Poe glanced down at the blaster on his belt, remembering his first encounter with Kylo Ren on Jakku. If any of these eventualities were true, what would he do about it?

The shuttle set down gently, its wings folding upward. The hum of the engines quieted. Poe, Finn, and Rose stepped forward. Poe held his breath as he waited for the shuttle to open.

The door lowered with a hiss, and Poe's heart pounded as he realized there were two figures silhouetted in the doorway.

"Who is that with her?" Finn asked, although Poe suspected he knew the answer.

Poe examined the two shadows, even though he already knew who accompanied her. Rey's silhouette was easy to recognize, her slight build and small stature belying her raw strength and fiery attitude. The other was tall, masculine, broad. Poe would recognize the shape anywhere, even without the mask.

"That," Poe said, "is Kylo Ren."

The two figures descended the ramp towards the gathered crowd. Finn grabbed his blaster. Poe was still, unbelieving. Neither Rey nor Kylo Ren seemed to be in restraints, and he walked behind her but she led the way.

"Rey!" Finn shouted, raising his blaster.

"Wait!" Rey answered, holding up her hands. "It's okay."

Finn did not lower his blaster, but he also did not fire. He trembled slightly, and Rose placed a hand on his back. Rey and Kylo Ren reached the end of the ramp, and their faces were finally cast in light.

Poe stepped forward, and he knew his face was hard with concern and fear. He could not help but remember the torture he had endured at the hands of Kylo Ren. To see him again was not a welcome sight.

"Rey," he said in greeting. Then, more darkly, "Kylo Ren."

Rey glanced back at her tall companion before answering. "Poe Dameron," she said. "This is Ben Solo."

Poe could not keep the frown from his face. "We've met."

Kylo Ren looked at Poe with a softness in his eyes that made Poe uncomfortable. "I'm sorry for the nature of our previous encounter," he said.

"I bet you are," Poe said under his breath.

"What is he doing here?" Finn asked Rey harshly.

"I have decided to join you," Ben answered.

Finn and Poe looked at each other, then back at Rey. Poe knew he could never trust this tall, black-clad figure, no matter how docile he appeared at the moment. How Rey could trust him was beyond him as well. Rey had suffered just as much at the hands of Kylo Ren, and now she led him back to the Resistance headquarters?

"We need to talk, Rey," Poe said, not taking his eyes off Kylo Ren. "A lot has changed recently."

Rey nodded. "I know." She glanced again at her new companion. "I assume first you want to escort Ben to a guarded private room?"

"I was thinking more of a jail cell, to be honest," Poe said.

Rey turned her head as if she was listening to Kylo Ren speak, but he did not say anything out loud. Ren looked at her. Their faces were inscrutable. Rey turned back to Poe.

"I don't expect you to trust him right away—"

"Right away?" Poe scoffed. "Or ever?"

"I don't expect you to trust him, Poe. I only expect you to trust me. If you want him to sit in a jail cell while we talk, he will."

Poe couldn't be sure, but he thought he saw Kylo Ren bristle at the words. His face remained dispassionate. Rey continued, "I will escort him there."

Rey held out her hand, and Kylo Ren handed her his lightsaber with only the slightest hesitation. Their hands lingered in contact about half a second longer than strictly necessary, and Poe wondered what it would take for him to snap and kill her. Again, his first encounter with Kylo Ren replayed in his mind: the stopped blaster bolt, the total paralysis gripping him, the agony of the thoughts being ripped from his mind. This was an unstable and untrustworthy man, and even having him here made Poe uncomfortable.

Rey started to lead Kylo Ren towards the holding cell. Poe was still unsure of the nature of their relationship—they seemed wooden, too careful not to betray what had happened between them.

Poe turned to Finn and Rose as Rey and Kylo Ren passed. Finn lowered his blaster, his muscles still tense. "What is she thinking by bringing him here?" Finn said, his voice barely below a yell.

Poe's own thoughts echoed Finn's exactly, but he remembered Leia's hope that her son could be saved. "I don't know," he said carefully, "but let's give her a chance to explain."

Poe wished for the thousandth time that Leia was here to guide him. If she could find forgiveness for her son after he killed her husband, perhaps Poe could find forgiveness for him, too.


	17. Chapter 17

Poe waited impatiently in Leia's private lounge for Rey to return. He couldn't sit down. A hundred thoughts chased in circles in his mind, and they all centered around one thing: Kylo Ren.

Finn was also agitated. He paced back and forth on the other side of the room, his forehead creased with a frown. He turned his blaster over and over in his hands as if contemplating how best to use it.

Rose sat in one of the chairs, by far the calmest of the trio. She watched Finn as he paced. Poe wondered if she remained so calm because she had the least personal experience with Kylo Ren, or if there was something else to it.

"How could she bring him here?" Finn asked aloud, frustration clear in his voice.

Poe sighed. "Leia had hoped Rey would be the one to bring her son back from the Dark side. We owe it to Leia to give Rey a chance to explain."

Poe knew his voice did not sound convincing. He hadn't even convinced himself.

"Do you think it's true? What the First Order said?" Finn asked. "Were he and Rey working together?"

Rose laughed softly, and Finn's attention snapped to her. "What?" Finn demanded.

"There's more to it than that," Rose said, amusement plain on her face.

"What are you talking about?" Finn asked.

"You guys are blind," Rose said. "It's obvious. He's in love with her."

This time, Poe laughed. "You've got to be kidding me."

"You're saying Kylo Ren turned to the Light because he's in love with Rey?" Finn said disbelievingly.

Rose shook her head slightly. "No. That's not what I'm saying at all. But he is in love with Rey."

Poe turned, looking at the wall in exasperation. "So what if he's in love with Rey, anyway? It's not like she could be in love with him."

In answer, Rose just smiled.

* * *

"Jail? Really?" Ben said. His temper was rising within him.

He and Rey stood outside the cell, standing about a step apart. Nearby, a couple of Resistance fighters stood, presumably his future guards.

"Can you blame them?" Rey asked. He could tell she wanted to touch him, but they had agreed to keep the personal nature of their relationship a secret for now.

Ben rolled his eyes, sighing sharply. "How long do you expect me to play nice?"

Rey raised an eyebrow. "Play? I thought you were nice now," she teased.

He worked his mouth, trying not to smile. "I never promised to be nice."

She gestured with her head, indicating he should step into the cell. "I'll be back after our meeting. Promise not to bully anyone with the Force?"

He laughed shortly. "As long as they don't bully me first."

* * *

Rey knew that this meeting would be tense. That much was obvious. She knew that Finn and Poe had both had up close and personal interactions with Kylo Ren, and she knew neither would be ready to accept him even as a neutral addition to the Resistance.

And what argument did she have to prove her point? That they had fallen in love? That was not enough to convince even herself, she admitted. She honestly wasn't sure what Ben's motivations were in coming here, or how long this new attitude would last. When Poe had demanded a jail cell for his quarters, Rey had wondered if that would be the end of his good behavior already.

Steeling herself, Rey knocked on the door to the lounge and opened it. Poe was standing there, facing away from the door with tense shoulders. Finn had stopped mid-pace nearer to her, his face aggressive and pained. Rose sat calmly in a chair, a knowing smile on her face. Rey took a deep breath and stepped in, closing the door behind her.

"What were you thinking, bringing him here?!" Finn demanded, taking a step forward.

"Finn," she started patiently, "the First Order has rejected him. He's not going to give away our location."

Poe pivoted, looking at Rey with sharp eyes. "How do you know, exactly, that this is not some sort trap, Rey? Get you to trust him, to lead him here?" He stopped, taking a steadying breath. "We've lost so much already, Rey. We can't lose more."

Rey looked downward as another wave of grief crested. "I know this isn't a trap. The First Order rejected him. He was not in on that." She remembered his agony and rage as he destroyed the control room at the fuel station. If that was an act, it was an exquisite one. "And I don't know if you've forgotten, but Leia was his mother. We are not the only ones who felt that loss."

Finn scoffed at that. "We're supposed to believe he cares? You were there when he killed Han, we both were."

Rey trembled slightly as that memory passed through her yet again. "I was. But believe it or not, he regrets that moment more than any other action in his life."

Poe closed his eyes, seemingly summoning strength. "Look, Rey. I wouldn't be even humoring this except for the fact that Leia seemed sure that you could bring him back from the Dark. She had hoped she would be here to see it, but since she's not, I feel even more obligated to give him a chance."

Poe took a deep steadying breath. "I can't trust him, Rey. The fact remains that none of us can stop him if — when — he decides to betray us. He can protect himself from blasters, he can paralyze our bodies, he can read our thoughts…"

Rey looked at Poe darkly. "So can I."

Finn and Poe both stared at her for a long moment. She didn't like pointing out her similarities to Kylo Ren, but the time she had spent with him had only proved to her they were more alike than different. She knew that the more Finn and Poe understood about her abilities, the more they would feel uncomfortable around her. But, it was the truth, and it seemed especially relevant in this moment.

"Kylo Ren has saved me more than once now," Rey said. "When I was onboard the _Supremacy_ , he brought me before Snoke, and when Snoke tried to kill me, Ben killed him." Rey could not maintain eye contact as the shock washed over their faces. She could only remember the hope she had felt in that moment, that she wouldn't have to be alone. "We fought alongside each other, killed all of Snoke's guards."

"And then, as the new Supreme Leader of the First Order tried to kill us all," Poe countered, the shock of her news fading. "Whatever good had washed over him in the Throne Room had faded. If Luke had been there, Kylo Ren would have killed him!"

"Yes," Rey agreed. "He and Luke had a personal misunderstanding that neither of them was able to overcome. That's a longer story than I think you have time for."

Poe's frustration only increased. "Great. So what you're saying is that if any of us have a personal misunderstanding with Kylo Ren, he might try and kill us, but otherwise, it's okay?"

Rey felt her own temper rising. She knew that they wouldn't accept him, but she wasn't ready for the level of argument they were having. She couldn't defend him to them because they couldn't understand like she could. She strode past Rose and Finn and collapsed into a chair, her forehead in her hands.

"Look," she said. "It's not my story to tell. If you want to know why he hated Luke, you'll have to ask him. But let me assure you, there were wrongdoings on both sides in that disagreement."

Rose finally spoke: "You said he saved you more than once."

Rey took a deep breath and lifted her head from her hands. "Yes. After the crash. He found me in the wreckage and carried me to safety. If it hadn't been for him, I would've died."

Poe raised a fist to his head, unable to be calm where Kylo Ren was involved. "If it hadn't been for him, you wouldn't have crashed!" he shouted.

Her lips tightened. "You could make an argument that the crash was actually my fault," she admitted. "But," she continued before he could shout again, "I know that it wouldn't have happened if he wasn't chasing me. I know."

Rey stood again, turning to face the wall. "Look, I'm not arguing that he's a saint. I'm not even arguing that he's a good person. But, if we only accepted help from good people, the Resistance would've died a long time ago."

Silence filled the room, and Rey turned to face her friends. She knew that they trusted her completely, but she also knew she was asking a lot of them. They hadn't been in his mind, hadn't felt his grief for Leia and for Han, and, most of all, they didn't love him.

"I told you," Rose said. She looked directly into Finn's eyes. "This is how we win. I told you."

Rey had no idea what she was talking about, but Finn did. He shook his head, looking at the ground. Rey decided not to ask, especially since it seemed that Rose was the only one on her side.

"I'm not asking you to like him. I'm not even asking you to trust him," Rey said, looking from Finn to Poe and back again. "I'm just asking you to trust me."

Poe's shoulders slumped. He huffed sharply. "It's what Leia would have wanted."

Poe sat on the corner of the table, defeat in his eyes. Rey walked over to join him, putting her arm around his shoulders. "There's a lot riding on you, I know," Rey said softly. "I know how much pressure you're feeling. I didn't want to do this to you, Poe."

"I miss her," he said quietly.

"Me too," Rey said.

Poe put his hand on Rey's knee. "We missed you too, Rey."

Rey smiled. "I got back as quickly as I could, considering."

Finally, Poe laughed. "Well, one thing is for sure: We're going to need all the help we can get if we're going to defeat the First Order."

Rey laughed too. "Let me guess: you already have a plan?"

Poe shook his head. "Not exactly," he admitted. "More like 3 or 4 plans."

Rey stood. "I should go let Ben know that he's not being executed yet," she said, trying to keep the mood light. Poe still flinched at the name. "Does he have to stay in the jail cell?"

Poe couldn't meet her eyes. "As a sign of good faith," he said.

She sighed. "Alright. As a sign of good faith."

She rose, looking once more around the room at her friends. "I hope you don't mind if I take the night off from strategizing," she said. "I'm afraid I could use a bit of rest."

"Of course," Poe said. "Your quarters are ready, just as you left them."

Rey smiled. "Again, thank you for your trust in me."

"Always, Rey," Finn said. "Good night."

Rey left the three of them, knowing full well that they would continue to talk about her new companion into the night. Rey only hoped that Ben would accept the idea of his new "quarters" temporarily.

* * *

"Come to visit the prisoner?" asked one of the guards. "Do you have authorization?"

Rey took both lightsabers off her belt, setting them on the table. "Authorization? I brought him here, isn't that enough?"

The second guard jabbed the first in the ribcage with his elbow. "That's Rey the Jedi," he whispered, "let her through!"

"I'm not trying to cause trouble," she said. "Just call Commander Dameron if you need authorization."

The first guard deflated. "That won't be necessary. Go on through."

Rey rounded a corner to the row of cells. All were unoccupied aside from one. She opened the cell door and slipped inside. After a second, it closed behind her.

"At least it's a private cell," she said.

He was laying back on the cot, his eyes closed. She knew he had felt her coming. He didn't even open his eyes.

"I think there might be a camera," he said. "How did the meeting go?"

She scanned the room for a camera. The Resistance had converted private living quarters into a makeshift prison, even though it got very little use. The room was built like a minimalist military quarters, with four white walls, and a small private 'fresher. The door was fortified, but still just a door. The cot he lay on was also white, with white sheets. His black clothing was a stark contrast.

"About as I expected," she said. "They aren't going to trust you."

He nodded. "They're going to make me stay in here, aren't they?"

Rey sighed. "Yeah."

He finally opened his eyes, looking up at her. "How much did you tell them?"

"Only what was mine to tell," she answered.

They were silent for a long moment. There was a lot more that she wanted to say, but she wasn't ready for her Resistance friends to know the true nature of her relationship with Ben. If there was a camera, and if anyone was watching the feed, they had to be very careful about what they said and did.

 _Did you find the camera yet?_ Ben asked her, through the Force. She shook her head infinitesimally.

 _Here_ , he answered, showing her a tiny black dot in the corner, looking at first glance like nothing more than a defect in the wall.

With a small flick of her fingers, she used the Force to press a button on the outer control panel, setting the camera to replay a loop of the last 30 seconds on repeat. Letting her breath out in a rush, she stepped forward to sit on the edge of his cot. He sat up, folding his hands in his lap.

"Grief is a strange thing," Ben murmured, looking at his hands. "You expect it to be this unbearable agony, but more often than that I feel nothing at all."

Rey reached out and took one of his hands. "Ben, I'm glad you came with me. You need people around you, so you don't do anything you'll regret."

He looked down at the hand that held his. "And what if I regret this?"

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it," she said. It comforted him that she didn't insist he wouldn't regret it. She couldn't. People made strange decisions in grief, and not always good ones.

"Did you love me before your grief?" she asked, knowing the answer already.

He looked up at her, his eyes first meeting hers, then falling to her lips. "Yes," he said, without hesitation.

She smiled, realizing that she was fixated on his lips too. "We can work with that."

They were being drawn together. She felt herself leaning forward.

"I don't know if I'm ready to fight for the Resistance," he admitted.

"I know. But you're ready to fight _against_ the First Order."

He knew she was right, but he didn't answer. They were so close together now she could feel his breath on her lips. He tilted his head ever so slightly to the left. His next words sounded like they were torn from his throat: "I need to feel something."

"Let's try this." She leaned forward, meeting his lips with hers. She had intended a soft kiss, but instead, he met her advances with hunger, passion.

 _Are you sure the camera is deactivated?_ he asked, even his mind-voice breathless.

 _It's too late now_.

Their kiss deepened, and his tongue darted into her mouth. She gasped for breath around his lips, biting his lower lip as she pulled away. Again they crashed together, their hearts pounding. He forced their lips together harshly so that it almost hurt.

His hand grasped the back of her head, almost pulling her hair. She clung to his shoulders as if she were worried about falling. His tongue fought hers roughly as if demanding her submission.

Stubble covered his cheeks. It was sandpaper on her face. She couldn't be sure, but she thought she tasted a salty tear on his lips. Whether his or hers, she couldn't tell.

He twisted, forcing her down onto the cot underneath him. He straddled her hips, moving to kiss and bite her neck. She placed one of his hands on her breast, which he massaged forcefully.

They both gasped for breath, the sound filling the air. She grabbed handfuls of his shirt, tugging fiercely. His mouth returned to hers, covering it, swallowing her breath. Their teeth bumped together as they clashed. Rey felt desperation rising in her chest. He tore at her clothing, laying her bare beneath him.

He stood, tearing off his own trousers and pants. When he was over her again, she wrapped her legs around his hips. She looked into his eyes, and his pupils were blown black with lust. She felt flushed, overwhelmed. She was so easily undone by him, so easily electrified by his touch, his attention.

His hand moved to her throat. For a moment, she panicked as her breath was constricted and her face flushed. Almost as quickly as he started, he let go.

"Too much?" he asked, his gaze intense.

Her heart pounded, but her fantasies had awoken again of Kylo Ren, the Supreme Leader, pleasuring her. She bit her lip, and this time the flush in her cheeks had more to do with embarrassment.

"No," she answered.

His hand returned to her neck as he thrust into her. She moaned against him, her fingernails dragging against his shirt. She gasped breaths when he allowed it, and one of her hands fell to rub her own clit.

He leaned down to whisper in her ear, biting her earlobe hard enough to make her squeal. "Quietly, my love. They'll hear."

The tension in her felt like a coiled spring. Her thighs quivered, and she went still beneath him. It seemed her heart had stopped, and it felt like every sensation was simultaneously magnified and dampened as she verged on overload.

A cry ripped from her throat, and his hand moved from her neck to cover her mouth. Her hands flew back to his shoulders as pleasure took her. Even though he was no longer choking her, she still felt as though she couldn't breathe. She cried out wordlessly into his hand as wave after wave coursed through her.

He groaned, his hand falling from her face. He buried his face into her neck as he spilled into her. Her pleasure was fading, but she still twitched with the occasional aftershock as he moved in her.

Soon they were both still. Her arms were around him as they caught their breath. His weight on her was comforting, and she could feel his heart beating in his chest.

Too soon, he rolled off of her. She responded by curling up against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her.

"Shouldn't you go?" he asked. The words vibrated in his chest. She pulled herself closer to him. "I'm thinking they might get suspicious."

Rey shut her eyes, focusing on the feel of his breath rising in his chest, on the smell of him. "Just a few minutes longer. I think they're probably suspicious already." The silence returned, and too soon she felt herself drifting off to sleep.

"Will they trust you more or less if they find out I love you?" she asked.

His hand cradled the back of her head. "I don't know. Will we soon find out?"

She pulled away from him reluctantly. "I hope so. But not yet."

She rose, stepping into his 'fresher to wash the smell of him from her. She emerged, clean and dressed, to find him dressed and on the cot in approximately the same position in which she found him the first time.

"You were another step to the left," he said with a smirk.

"Oh, right," she said, "the camera." She stepped to the position he indicated before allowing the camera to resume the feed.

"Ben," she said, "until tomorrow."

He inclined his head. "You're not alone," he said, but his meaning was clear.

She smiled. "Neither are you."

Rey slipped out of his cell, but she lingered a moment by the door. What she wouldn't give to just sleep beside him for once, instead of these scattered moments of lust and physicality. She placed a single hand flat against the door, feeling again the echo of him against her, the rise and fall of his breaths, and the beating of his heart.

How could Poe and Finn understand, when she couldn't even understand this herself?


	18. Chapter 18

The Resistance looked remarkably small when it was all gathered in one room. The fact that it could all be gathered in one room was a depressing fact on its own. Rey looked around at her compatriots and wondered if they thought the same.

They had gathered crates and boxes to supplement the chairs, and everyone sat in a loose circle. Voices melded together into one background noise as everyone chattered to their friends. No one knew what the meeting was about yet, and Poe hadn't yet emerged to tell everyone. Rey sat next to Finn and Rose in the front row expectantly. She suspected that it was a meeting about the new organization for the Resistance, but she wondered if her new companion had anything to do with it.

A hush fell over the room, and Rey looked up to see Poe entering from the left. BB-8 rolled past his feet to stop before Rey and Finn with a friendly beep.

"Alright, rebels," Poe said. "We've taken a day to recover from the events of Aronat Minor. I think we can all agree that despite our small victory we feel in our hearts more of a loss. Despite that, we must go on. General Organa would have wanted that.

"In that light, I think it's time to name a new Resistance High Command. And don't worry, I'm not being presumptuous. The first order of business is to nominate and elect a new general to lead the Resistance in Leia's stead.

"Do I have any nominations?"

"I nominate Poe Dameron!"

Rey looked around for the source of the voice, but everyone was talking again.

"Seconded!" added several more voices.

Poe had the dignity or lack of self-awareness to look surprised. Jessika Pava looked up from the front row with a twinkle in her eyes. "Did you expect anything else?" She looked around the room with a smile on her face, standing to face them. "Shall we put it to a formal vote? Any other nominations?"

The crowd offered no further nominations, just a general murmur of assent. BB-8 chirped happily to no-one in particular.

"All those in favor of promoting Poe Dameron to the rank of general and leader of the Resistance?" Pava asked, standing.

The vote was unanimous. Rey looked around the room to see a sea of raised arms and felt pride rising in her chest at the sight. She had no doubt that Poe was the best choice for the role. He was a natural leader, and more than that, he was charismatic and kind and devoted.

Poe smiled sheepishly at the gathered crowd. "Your confidence overwhelms me," he said, and Rey knew he meant it. Pava clapped him once on the shoulder before returning to her seat.

"Leia put forward suggestions for the new Resistance High Command following the tragedy of the _Raddus,_ " Poe said. "The list of names is as follows, for your consideration: Poe Dameron, Rey, Finn, Jessika Pava, Kaydel Ko Connix, and Nien Nunb."

Rey looked around, making uneasy eye contact with the others mentioned on the list. She had never been a leader or officer before, and she wasn't sure she was ready to be one now. Finn looked similarly uncomfortable, at least. BB-8's head whirled around, looking from Rey to Finn to Poe and back again.

Poe looked out on the crowd. "I will be accepting further nominations until the end of the day. I am also happy to discuss any concerns in private before the official decision is made."

Poe paused and met Rey's eyes. A stab of dread hit her in her chest. So Ben was to be a topic of this meeting. Rey swallowed and pleaded with him silently for gentle words.

"One additional topic of discussion," he started, breaking eye contact to look again out at the crowd. "I know everyone is wondering about the presence of Kylo Ren within this stronghold. I know that many of us have personal experiences with him, and I know they have not been favorable."

Poe paused. Acid boiled in Rey's stomach. She didn't know if she could stand exile or further separation from Ben, and, more importantly than that, didn't know if Ben's fragile new Light could stand it either.

"I hear your discomfort. I recognize it. However, I ask a favor: patience. Many of you know that Kylo Ren's true name is Ben Solo and that he is the son of our departed general. He is mourning her, same as us, and he deserves peace and solitude during this time."

Poe again looked at Rey, and she hoped her eyes conveyed the gratitude she felt.

"How he will answer for his crimes will be a topic for discussion moving forward," Poe said. Rey flinched. "I encourage open but civil discussion on the topic."

Poe sighed, his demeanor changing effortlessly from leader to friend. "Looking forward we need to remember that all of us need a friend in trying times. We need to band together to support each other.

"I expect to have a plan coming together in the next few days. Until then, may the Force be with us."

The gathered crowd began to disperse slowly, people talking and whispering with occasional glances in Rey's direction. Rey put a hand on BB-8 before the droid rolled off to rejoin Poe. Rey stood, and Finn walked over to join her.

"High Command, huh?" Finn said nervously.

"I guess so," Rey said. "I didn't ask for that."

"Me neither." He laughed. "Who'd have thought, a Stormtrooper becoming a member of the Resistance High Command?"

Rey laughed in return. "No one, I'm sure."

"A Stormtrooper and a Jedi – an unlikely pair," Finn said. They fell into uncomfortable silence. Rey could sense his thousand unanswered questions, and they all had to do with Kylo Ren.

Rey looked into his eyes. On the surface, there was friendship and warmth, but underneath dwelled accusation, mistrust, and even anger. She couldn't blame him. His upbringing as a Stormtrooper had not been under Kylo Ren, but she couldn't deny that he had probably feared the mysterious Dark side tyrant nonetheless.

"I'm sorry, Finn, to dredge up any past feelings," she said finally.

Finn flinched and his eyes closed off from her. "Rose says he loves you. Is that true?"

Rey's heart skipped a beat. "What?"

Finn's breath escaped in a rush. "That's what I said! It's ridiculous. But I had to ask…"

Rey realized he had just been looking for her to deny it, as it was something he could not understand. Even as she relaxed, her gut twisted with dread. How would they react when they found out the truth?

* * *

The new members of the Resistance High Command gathered in the empty room that evening. It seemed cavernous now that the rest of the Resistance had resumed their normal activities. The young officers looked at each other in uncomfortable silence; it seemed none of them knew exactly what protocol should be to start a meeting.

"Tell me, Poe, any complaints about me being named to the High Command?" Pava said, a sparkle in her eye.

Poe laughed. "Only from me. And that's General Dameron to you."

Pava rolled her eyes, looking around for a reaction. Rey shook her head.

"Maybe if _General Dameron_ would start the meeting, everyone would believe he was in charge here," Finn teased.

This time, Poe shook his head. "Touché, Finn. I am sure you are all wondering what our next move is going to be. The truth is, I don't know. Whatever intelligence Leia had gathered on the First Order's next plan seems to have died with her."

The officers glanced around at each other, worry in their eyes. It struck Rey how old they all looked, despite their physical ages. Finn couldn't have been more than 5 years her senior, and yet his eyes looked like they belonged in someone much older. Rey wondered if they saw the same age in her eyes, especially now.

"So we need to gather intelligence," Pava said. She was never one to abide inaction.

"Exactly," Poe said.

Their faces were cast in a greenish-yellow glow from the surrounding computer screens. Rey looked around the room only to realize every face was trained on her.

"Do you think Kylo Ren might have any insight?" Finn asked, speaking aloud the words that everyone had been thinking.

Rey swallowed against the lump in her throat. "Maybe. But Hux is Supreme Leader now. His information is outdated."

Poe's brow wrinkled. "Even so…" He didn't look at Rey, perhaps thinking he could save her from the fire in his gaze. Nonetheless, she felt the heat of it in her chest. "We should interrogate him."

"Let me," Rey said, too quickly. She sighed, realizing the mistake, and began again. "I mean to say, I think if I ask him he would easily share what he knows."

Suspicion colored Poe's face. He maintained that he trusted Rey, but she knew that every word out of her mouth that treated Ben with kindness tested that trust.

"The matter remains of what to do about Kylo Ren," Nunb said, addressing the unspoken thought of the day. "He must answer for his crimes."

Rey deflated. Not for the first time, she wondered if bringing Ben here was a mistake.

"Yes," Poe said. "That has been the biggest concern brought up by the ranks since he was incarcerated."

Incarcerated. That was a word Rey wouldn't have used to describe her actions in bringing Ben here. Redeemed, maybe. Recruited. But not incarcerated. And yet, as she reflected on what had happened since their landing on Vorill Four, perhaps incarcerated was the most accurate word. Had Ben thought this as well?

Rey knew that some sort of punishment lay ahead for him. He deserved as much. After all, he had not earned the nickname "Jedi Killer" for incendiary speeches. But even if they ignored his early crimes, he had plenty to answer for, as a person and as an officer of the First Order.

Rey realized Poe had continued speaking, despite her introspection. Her mind replayed what it had heard, and one word stuck out to her:

 _Execution_.

"It seems that some of our members are proponents of the death penalty in circumstances where the First Order is concerned," Poe said. Rey was relieved to hear a measure of disdain in his voice.

"No," Finn said. "Rose and I were captured by the First Order not so long ago. Their first reaction was execution. If we go that way we are no better than them."

Finn's words buoyed her spirits, if only a little. She had been rendered so speechless she had not summoned a defense at first. As her words returned, only rage filled her, and her bitter answer would not have served as well as Finn's levelheaded response.

Rey's hands trembled with her anger. She was feeling far too defensive to speak. She had come to recognize the Darkness when it threatened to overcome her. Like in the forest the first time she had seen Ben, on Starkiller Base when she had given him his scar, and again in the Throne Room against the Praetorian Guard. She had begun to rely on anger as a source of strength, despite the Jedi warning against it.

"I agree with Finn," Connix said, her eyes fixed on Rey, who was suddenly self-conscious about her flare of anger. "But I think we are all in agreement that some punishment must come."

Rey met Kaydel's eyes, measuring her words. She had expected this very scenario to unfold, so why did her heart insist upon resisting it?

"Rey," Poe said, "you have said already that the full story is not yours to tell, but I think it would help us all to understand if you could explain why exactly Kylo Ren is here with you, and how you came to bring him without restraints…"

Surprise at Poe's words quelled her anger. She had not expected an invitation to explain. She looked around the room, finding only hesitation and anticipation on the faces of the High Command.

Rey would've given her left arm for a drink of water. "I should probably start at the beginning," she said.

She recounted the story, with personal details omitted, starting from the first Force connection on Ahch-To. She described how offended she had been by it, how she had hated him until she began to learn more about how similar they were. Skimming over the more…emotional moments, she described the fight against Snoke and how, very nearly, they had come to the same side. She even described their falling-out at Crait, and how she had at that moment known without a shadow of a doubt that redeeming him was impossible.

Then, more softly, she admitted that the bond re-opened in the days following Crait, despite her certainty that she had closed it altogether. She left out, of course, the details of the event that had opened it again. She had…run into Ben on the Star Destroyer. Seeing him again had been enough.

Watching Poe's face, she described the fight between her X-wing and his TIE silencer. He looked away as she described the crash and sending Poe back through Hyperspace without her.

She couldn't make eye contact with anyone as she remembered waking up in the medical bay with Ben by her side. The realization that he had saved her…well, she had begun to wonder if her first certainty had been wrong and if he truly could be redeemed.

Finally, she told them how the First Order had betrayed him, and how in that moment, he had realized that his devotion to them had brought him nothing but pain. However, it was when Leia had died that he saw that not only did the Dark side arise from pain, but it brought him pain as well.

"He is here because he is ready to fight against the First Order," she said, looking up at them again. "I don't think he is ready to join the Resistance, in those words. At least, not yet.

"But I also believe he will not hurt you, or undermine any of our operations."

Rey fell silent, and no one said a word for a moment. Confusion and reluctance painted their faces. No one could seem to figure out what they should be feeling given these revelations.

"I don't see how you can trust him, or, more than that, expect any of us to trust him," Finn said suddenly, venom in his tone. "After all he has done. Rey, he is the Jedi Killer, and he killed Han Solo. How can you trust him?"

"I don't," she said automatically. That was a lie, she realized half a second later. It felt wrong on her tongue. "Or, I guess I do," she admitted. "But for reasons I can't expect you to understand. The Force has connected our minds, I see his thoughts—"

"Or what he wants you to see of them," Poe interrupted. "How do we know—how do you believe that these are the truth, knowing what we know about Kylo Ren?"

She sighed. "Haven't you heard the story of Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader? How in his last hour, in Luke's hour of need, Vader became Anakin Skywalker again?" Her voice was pleading. "People can come back from the Dark side. It's happened before."

"Yes," said Poe. "But Vader turned to save his son, arguably a selfish reason. Here there is no Luke to save."

Rey's heart stopped. Is that what she was? The Luke to Kylo Ren's Vader? The selfish love that he turned to save? That thought cheapened everything she had wondered about the redemption idea—is it even redemption if it's only a self-serving move?

"No," Rey said, "but I believe there is more to it than that."

The Force ghost of Rhona Asmé jumped to her mind again. The Unifying Force, the idea that the Light/Dark dichotomy was manufactured, that was the truth she believed. If Ben Solo did not have to turn back to the Light, if he only had to use the Force for good, this was a more achievable goal.

"I have been reviewing the Jedi texts," Rey said. To be the last Jedi had left her in a unique position to rewrite the galaxy's view of the Force. She felt that responsibility as a heavy weight in her heart. "There is some evidence that the division between the Light and the Dark is not so…black and white."

The responding facial expressions told her that they were not yet ready to forget the legends of Luke Skywalker and the never-ending quest for Light. She backpedaled.

"Look, I'm new at this. I don't know what to believe where the Force is concerned. But I have to— _we_ have to have hope that in some way, balance is possible."

The High Command looked at each other, and Rey watched their wordless conversations on the edge of her seat.

"Some would believe," Nunb said slowly, "that a powerful Light against a powerful Dark is exactly balance."

Rey had heard these words before. Luke had pointed out the two sides on the island of Ahch-To. However, he had also pointed out the other dichotomies that lead to balance, such as life and death. One could not exist without the other, and yet neither could be simply regarded as good or evil.

"Perhaps we need more time to consider this question," Poe said, sensing as Rey did the impending stalemate. "We have more information than we have before, and we have Rey's assurance that he will not act against us.

"More importantly, we have to figure out what the First Order's next move is. Let us talk about that."

Rey allowed her attention to slip from the meeting for just a moment, to check on Ben's presence in the jail cell. He was there, meditating, but nothing had changed. Relief washed over her. Poe's words had cast doubt upon her. But, she and Ben's cooperation could only continue if they trusted each other, and she resolved to do exactly that until he gave her a reason to do otherwise.

* * *

Supreme Leader Armitage Hux considered the information presented to him by the First Order High Command. Their holoprojections cast the room in a bluish glow, making Hux's face look even more gaunt and pale than usual. He scrolled through the tactical log on a pad in his hand.

"I agree that this merits consideration," Hux said, his mind already whirring with a hundred schemes. "Stand by for further orders. That will be all."

Hux closed the holocamera with a quick motion before anyone had a chance to answer. The Supreme Leadership had become more boring in the days since Leia's assassination. He needed a new scheme to focus his attention on, preferably one that would crush the Resistance's efforts as solidly as his last had crushed their souls.

Most of the former New Republic planets had already fallen to the First Order's control, but the Resistance's base could be on any of a hundred moons throughout the galaxy. Whispers of sightings of a lone X-wing or Resistance Starbird had been followed countless times only to fizzle out. Hux's special forces had wiped out at least a dozen small Resistance cells, but all had proven to be fighting in the Resistance's name but without any concrete connection to the main organization itself.

Yet again, it seemed the only way to meet the Resistance in open battle was to draw them out. But Hux knew they were crippled since the attack on Aronat Minor, and they would not be so easily enticed to open warfare.

No. Espionage would be easier to tempt at this fragile time. If he arranged a meeting of the First Order High Command and allowed its time and location to be leaked… Yes, the Resistance would come. And, even more foolishly, they would send their most important members. They always did. Whoever had succeeded Leia as leader, and likely even their Jedi, if she still lived, would be dispatched to such a meeting. Yes. That would do.

A passing thought brought a thin smile to Hux's face. If Kylo Ren still lived, even he might be tempted to such a place. The temptation of revenge against Leia's killer would be too much for the hot-headed man-child to resist. The list of possible captures in such a plan was so delicious Hux could almost feel his stomach growl.

Hux set aside the pad of tactical information and began to concoct a plan in full. If he was careful, the Resistance would be ended in a few short days. The entire galaxy would submit to the First Order, and finally, peace and order could be ensured again.


	19. Chapter 19

Ben Solo lay in the prison cell, staring at the white ceiling. He supposed he deserved his imprisonment, but that didn't make it any more pleasant.

Of course, Rey would visit again, when she could. From what he had gathered, the Resistance was naming a new High Command today, and he fully expected Rey would be on it. He also expected that one of their first orders of business would be to discuss him and his crimes. That he didn't expect to go well.

Ben had nothing but time for introspection over the last couple of days, aside, of course, from Rey's visit the day before. He had asked himself a lot of hard questions, with no answers to be found. At times, grief and guilt had overwhelmed him to the point that he couldn't think. Instead, he meditated, determined to shut it all out.

And yet, Rey was always there, a warm, comforting presence surrounding him. She never allowed their bond to close fully anymore; she always let him feel at least her presence, her reassurance.

He wondered if that was because she was worried he would turn on her again. She had those fleeting thoughts. He felt them, even though she tried to hide them from him. She loved him, she wanted him here, but she was scared he would fall again as his grief faded.

To be honest, he had wondered that himself. His emotions still ran deep and raw within him, and the separation between himself and the Dark side was tenuous at best.

Anger rankled him every time he imagined the smug faces of Poe Dameron and the other Resistance members when he was imprisoned here. The very indignity of being closed in this tiny white room…it was almost enough to drive him away. Almost.

He sighed, wishing for Rey to return to his cell to distract him again. It was so much easier not to think about everything. He didn't want to make any big decisions. After all, he had made nothing but mistakes in the past. He closed his eyes, determined to meditate again until Rey returned to him.

"Ben."

He jumped. The voice wasn't Rey's, and it was perhaps even more familiar. But it was also impossible.

"Ben," the voice repeated. It was even clearer. It was Leia's. Impossible.

Ben opened his eyes, and his chest tightened violently when his eyes fell on the blue specter standing before him.

"Mother," he gasped.

She stood calmly before him in blue translucency. She was younger than he remembered her, dressed like she had in his childhood on Chandrila. Her long hair was pulled into a single braid that cascaded down her back, and a gauzy white dress brought back memories of softly sung lullabies and softer hugs.

He could barely draw breath, and tears stung his eyes. "Mother, how is this possible?"

She smiled, and the expression lifted the weight from his chest instantly. "Like my brother, I had the potential to use the Force. It is possible, as you must know, to continue on after death by using the Force."

Ben had read about the ability of Jedi to retain their identity after death, but he had never seen proof of its truth. Even if he had, he wouldn't have expected Leia to be granted this power, as she had no Jedi training herself.

She seemed to read his thoughts. "Luke helped guide me in this transition, Ben. He knew it was important that I have the chance to speak with you, even if death separated us first."

Ben couldn't help but bristle at the mention of Luke. Their confrontation on Crait had done a lot to relieve his resentment as time passed, but Ben wondered if he would ever find the strength to forgive his Master completely.

Ben's voice broke as he spoke, surprising himself. "I wanted you to be alive to see this."

Again, Leia smiled, but this time, there was sadness in her eyes. "Me too. I'm so proud of you, Ben."

He shook his head slightly. He couldn't believe her. Not after what he had done. Tears overflowed his eyes, falling warm and salty onto his cheeks. "I'm so sorry, Mom, for everything."

The apparition stepped over to sit on the cot with him. He imagined she would embrace him if she could. He felt selfish. Here she was, comforting him, when he had killed her husband.

"I know. Hush, now. We needn't talk about it."

A broken sob escaped his throat. If he didn't deserve Rey, he certainly didn't deserve Leia Organa. The Force had granted him so many wonderful things, and he had discarded all of them.

"Listen," she said, and he did his best to swallow his tears. "Han forgives you. He cannot visit you like I can, but I can feel him, even now. He forgives you."

Ben felt nauseated. How could everyone who had a hand in raising him be so forgiving, so kind, and he still turned out like this?

"I know I should have told you about your grandfather sooner. I was trying to protect you, but that was misguided. Foolishly, I believed the biggest consequence of that revelation was my disgrace in the Senate. I knew the news would hurt you, but I didn't anticipate how much."

Guilt mingled with nausea in his throat, and he thought he might vomit. He had not reacted gracefully to his mother's dishonesty.

"Unlike Luke, I never believed in Darth Vader's redemption. I held on to my resentment of him until it tore my life apart. I never believed that anyone who fell to the Dark side could have any good in him."

The seams holding together Ben's dignity ripped apart. His inability to breathe held him rigid in place, or he might have crumpled onto the floor.

"The Force decided to teach me a lesson, Ben. I resisted it far too long. If I had only listened sooner, I might have been able to give you what you needed, to show you how to avoid your mistakes."

This, Ben could not bear. "No, Mother. My mistakes are my own. You should not feel responsible for the things I have done."

"The Dark side corrupts good people. I know that now. It feeds on pain, fear, and anger. We all feel those things, Ben. I could have helped you to channel them more constructively. Instead, I focused on the Senate, and then the Resistance. Ben, I lost you, but I never gave up on you."

Ben struggled for words. "I am so sorry," he repeated brokenly.

"I know," she said again, her voice soothing like a powerful analgesic. He managed a deep, even breath.

"Tell me about Rey," she said, and he could hear the smirk in her voice.

He raised his head, looking at her in surprise. "What is there to tell?"

She regarded him with amusement, and he imagined she would ruffle his hair, like she did when he was little. "You love her, don't you?"

A slight smile tugged at his lips. "How long have you known?"

"I suspected when Rey came back from your Star Destroyer with the supply shipment plans." She smirked at him. "It was obvious something had happened between you."

Ben blushed deeply, hoping she didn't know exactly what had passed during that particular encounter. "I don't know why the Force connected us," he said, "but the more I knew her…"

Leia wanted to take his hand, and he wanted to let her. Instead, she said, "Together, you and Rey can create something better for the galaxy, Ben. With your understanding of the Dark side and her understanding of the Light, you can teach young ones the Force like never before."

Ben was silent. Rey had said the same thing once before. It was something he had not yet considered in seriousness, but the repetition admittedly piqued his curiosity.

"Show her the Ben Solo I remember, and she will be at your side forever," Leia said, the full intensity of a mother's love in her tone. "And, Ben?

"I expect grandchildren."

Finally, Ben laughed. He wished dearly for one last embrace, but he reminded himself of the miracle of this conversation. "Rey will have to agree to that."

Leia's expression grew serious again. "Ben, you must atone for your crimes. Your slate is not wiped clean. But, I want you to know that your father and I forgive you. We love you."

"I know," he answered, casting his eyes downward again. "I love you, too. You and Father."

Leia smiled warmly, and for a moment, Ben was on Chandrila again, wrapped in her arms while she read to him. She stood, turning back to look at him.

"I can't stay, Ben, as much as I want to."

Peace spread through him, and his nausea faded. "I know."

She reached out, her hand by his cheek as if she was touching him. "I love you, Ben. May the Force be with you."

Ben gazed at her with intensity, memorizing every last feature of her face. "I love you, Mother."

Her figure faded, leaving him alone yet again in the white box of a room. For the first time in years, the stormy conflict inside him had quelled, if only for a moment.

* * *

For the second time in as many days, the entire Resistance gathered in the central room. The newly appointed High Command stood uneasily at the center, not yet used to their authority. C-3PO hovered nearby, offering to bring tea or refreshments to Poe and his colleagues, perhaps sensing their nerves.

"I have gathered us today to discuss a new development," General Dameron started, and the crowd hushed almost instantly. "We have a plan."

Rey looked around the room as excitement rippled through the crowd like a wave. It struck her in that moment how young they all were, herself included. Young enough to be excited about a pending battle, because battle meant adventure.

"We have intercepted a coded First Order transmission. Thanks to the tireless work of our trusted codebreakers, we have learned that they are planning a meeting of their High Command on Arkanis.

"Our plan is to infiltrate the meeting and to find out what they are planning. Assuming we are successful, we will have the upper hand as they plan their next attack."

Voices buzzed in the crowd as everyone discussed the plan. Snippets floated above the rest, speculations on who would be chosen to go, what the plan would be… Rey watched Poe, knowing he would announce the chosen players shortly.

"Only a few of our number can be risked on this mission. Those of you needed will be receiving your assignments in the next few hours. As for the rest of you, do not worry. There will soon be more than enough action to go around." Poe smirked darkly, and Rey heard a few chuckles from the crowd.

A few minutes later, the crowd had dissipated. Poe leaned over a console, tapping out assignments into the computer. Rey approached him.

"Don't worry," he said. "You're going."

Rey laughed shortly. "I wasn't worried. In fact, I could almost do without being chosen for once."

Poe smiled, but when she didn't leave, he turned. "What is it?"

Rey hesitated but knew she would get no rest unless she voiced what she was thinking. "I think Ben should come with us."

Poe laughed outright. "No. I don't think so."

She took a deep breath. "Poe, you choose me to go along because I am sensitive to the Force. You cannot deny that."

Poe frowned but did not answer.

"Ben can do the same, Poe." She pleaded him, with her voice and her eyes. "He can help us. Help _me_."

Poe looked pained. "I know you trust him, Rey. But I can't! This is too important to risk because of Kylo Ren."

Rey sighed. "I know. I don't ask you to trust him. I only ask you to believe me. If you let him come with us, I will take full responsibility for everything that happens because of him."

Poe was skeptical. It was written all over his face. "I trust you, Rey, but you are worrying me."

"I'm going to confide in you something I haven't told anyone else," Rey said, her voice catching in her throat. She hadn't dared to put these words together, even in her mind. "Ben Solo and I are too much alike. I need to know he can fight for good so that I can be sure I won't fall to the Dark." Desperation bled through her tone, and she knew Poe could not doubt how much she meant those words.

He considered her more seriously than he had before. He examined her eyes as if looking for the traces of Ben Solo within them. Suddenly, he sighed. "Alright. He can come. But do not make the mistake of thinking I won't kill him if anything goes wrong."

Rey swallowed. She did not doubt that for a second. "Understood." She pressed her lips together, gratitude shining through her eyes. "Poe, thank you."

He shook his head. "Don't mention it." He scrunched up his face. "How am I going to explain this to the others?"

She smiled sympathetically. "You won't regret it," she said.

He grimaced. "Somehow, I doubt that."

* * *

Rey sat on the floor next to Ben's cot, one knee bent and the other stretched out in front of her. He sat propped up against the wall on the mattress, the pillow tucked behind his back. They shared some rations she had brought down from the dining hall.

"They agreed to let you come along on the mission," Rey said, her mouth still half-full of food. She still hadn't gotten over her years of near-starvation on Jakku, and she couldn't ignore food when it was before her.

He turned to her sharply in surprise. "What? What mission?"

Rey shrugged, trying not to feed into his astonishment. "Poe says that Hux and the High Command are going to meet on Arkanis. We are going to try and learn something of their plans."

Ben frowned, setting his portion aside. "And how did Poe learn about this meeting?"

"We intercepted a coded transmission," Rey said with a shrug.

Ben's eyes narrowed. "The First Order meetings are never transmitted, even in code. Those locations are always delivered in person, to avoid just this."

Rey finally understood his concern. She lowered her tray to the floor. "So it's a trap, then."

Ben nodded. "It has to be."

"So should we not go?" Rey asked, as much of herself as of him.

He considered that question carefully. "I think we should go anyway, but with caution."

Rey smiled wryly. "I think it's good you come along, for more reasons than one. It will be good to have someone who knows how the First Order works."

"Leia spoke to me today," Ben said.

Rey looked at him, examining his facial expression closely. She seemed surprised, but not nearly as surprised as she could have been. Thoughtfully, she said, "I thought only Jedi could master the skill of the Force ghost projection…"

So she had seen one of these projections herself. Who, he wondered, and when? "She said Luke helped her. You've seen one of these Force ghosts? Who?"

Rey shook her head. "It's a story for another time. Tell me, what did Leia say? I mean, if you want to tell me."

He took a deep breath. His pulse quickened. "She said she and Han forgive me," he said, but he still didn't believe the words himself. "She said she is proud of me."

Rey smiled sadly. "She was happy to see you come home."

This time, it was Ben's turn for a mischievous smirk. "She also gave us her blessing."

The meaning of his words hit Rey, and she seemed almost taken aback. "She knows?" Watching his face, she corrected to the more accurate statement. "She knew?"

"Since the Star Destroyer," he said, feeling the blush rise in his cheeks again.

Rey's eyes looked into the distance, remembering. "That day she ordered me to not be alone with you again. She knew."

He flinched. "I hope she didn't know everything."

She laughed. "She didn't."

Rey reached up to put her hand on his knee. He covered her hand with his. When had touch, intimacy, become so natural for him? It had been so long since he had accepted the soft touches of affection, and yet, with her, it felt as if he had never stopped.

"I'm glad she came to you," Rey said, and her sincerity seemed to radiate through her touch. "You deserve to know forgiveness is possible."

Absently, he squeezed her hand. "Thank you. But I don't yet feel it."

She leaned over, kissing his hand. "I know. But you will."

There was a knock at the door, and they both jumped, snatching their hands away. Rey scrambled to her feet as they both looked toward the door.

"We have brought some new clothes, for the prisoner," said a voice through the door. Rey did not recognize it. It must have belonged to one of the many guards.

The door opened, and the guard seemed only a little surprised to find Rey in the cell too. "Apologies, Rey. I didn't know you were still here."

Ben rose slowly, stepping forward to accept the stack of clothes from the guard. "Thank you," he said.

Rey glanced at Ben, then at the guard again. "I should go," she said, but Ben could feel her reluctance. His heart reached out to her, begging her to stay. She looked at the floor. "Goodbye, Ben. I will bring you some dinner."

He watched as she stepped out of the cell. The guard closed the door behind her. Ben set the clothes aside. He didn't know how much longer he could stand this forced separation, even if he understood why she insisted upon it. It was undignified enough that he was forced to reside in this cell; it was so much worse that he couldn't openly show that Rey was his, and he was hers.

* * *

Finn, Rose, and Poe sat in the dining hall, sipping caf. Rey had left them almost half an hour ago, taking a tray of food downstairs to Kylo Ren. Finn watched the corridor not quite casually, hoping to notice when she returned from the prison level.

He nudged Poe as she came into view, and Poe turned to watch. "She's spending an awful lot of time down in the prison level," Finn said as she very nearly darted past. "I don't think she wants us to notice."

Poe frowned, returning his attention to the empty tray in front of him. "I hate to admit it, but I think she and Ren might even be friends…"

Rose smirked, raising her mug to cover it. She took a deep sip of caf, watching the boys speculate nervously. Rose didn't feel the need to remind them again of what she already knew. The truth would come out soon enough, no matter how hard Rey and Ben tried to hide it. She only hoped the rest of the Resistance could find the strength to accept it rather than mistrust it.


	20. Chapter 20

The tension in the room could be cut with a knife. Rey had never felt so cold before, and it was not the type of cold that could be resolved with a jacket. She looked back and forth at the steely faces, forcibly suppressing a shiver.

Ben was taking it well, though, all things considered. He looked sullen but contrite. It was a feat, to be sure, especially when taking into account the expressions being thrown at him by the other members of the team. He cast his eyes on the floor, careful not to make eye contact with anyone, even Rey.

Rey began to wonder if the silence would ever be broken when Poe took a breath to speak. "The people in this room have been selected to form a Strike Team for our mission to Arkanis. Each of you has been chosen due to a talent or skill that you possess to help us hopefully be successful."

Rey flinched as several people pointedly glanced at Ben. Nine Resistance fighters, including Poe, Ben, and Rey, formed the Strike Team. Finn had been selected to stay behind to lead in Poe's stead, and the rest of the High Command had been designated as too vital to be risked.

Rey surveyed the room, memorizing the faces of the chosen team. She recognized Anikka, a codebreaker who had, in a previous life, been a notorious thief. Two brothers, Senno and Tath, had been chosen due to their skills in translation and computer programming. The remaining three, Drea, Ulno, and Mabe, were a markswoman, an engineer, and a pilot. It was a mismatched team, but it was still unclear what they were walking into.

Poe's eyes fell on Ben again. "Kylo Ren has been selected to come with us due to his insider knowledge of the workings of the First Order High Command. In fact, he has some warnings to tell us now, before we leave."

Ben took a deep breath, drawing his shoulders back to sit up at his full height. He cut an imposing figure, Rey admitted, even in his borrowed Resistance clothing. She had never seen him wear any color other than black, but the Resistance uniform was a dark brown coat with the Starbird emblazoned on the left chest. His trousers were even darker, almost black, and he wore calf-high brown leather boots to complete the ensemble.

He addressed the Strike Team calmly, looking at each member in turn. "I have never known the First Order High Command to transmit coordinates or times of their meetings, even over secure, coded channels. Every meeting I attended during my tenure was announced in person, by one of the Special Forces troopers. For this reason, I am concerned that we are walking into a trap."

Drea shrugged, unfazed. "So they are expecting us. So what?" She looked around at the others. "I've faced worse odds."

Ben nodded once. "I agree. We should still take the bait. Whatever Armitage Hux has in mind for us, we should be there to meet it."

Rey glanced at Poe. He looked nauseated, but he managed to keep abject disgust from his face.

"Another thing," Ben continued, "the High Command meetings are highly secured, but subtly. Even what appears to be the lowliest trooper is almost certain to be a trained Special Forces trooper. What would fool an ordinary soldier will not fool anyone involved with the High Council chambers."

Anikka smirked. "Expert subterfuge is my specialty."

Ben's face didn't change. "Even so," he said, "the utmost caution should be taken."

Senno crossed his arms, his expression taut. "And why exactly should we trust Kylo Ren? You weren't worried about the wellbeing of the people in Tuanul. You ordered the death of my mother that day."

Ben flinched. His words were measured. "For that, I am sorry. I know that is not enough, but it is all I have to give. As for why you should trust me, well, I understand your hesitation. But, believe me, I have nothing to gain from lying to you now. The First Order has taken everything from me now."

 _Except you_ , his unspoken words finished. He looked Rey directly in the eyes, and she wished for the thousandth time that day that she could touch him openly, give him comfort.

Tath put a hand on his brother's shoulder. "How can we be sure he isn't sending Hux updates behind our back? Letting him know our plans and exactly how to thwart them?"

Poe sighed. "Look, I'm not thrilled about working with him either. But, I think we can't deny that he has already been useful for this mission. And," he said, meeting Ben's gaze dead-on, "if he tries to betray us, I will kill him on sight."

Rey felt the challenge on Ben's tongue as his hackles raise. _Try it, you ungrateful rat,_ he spat silently. But, mercifully, he said nothing aloud.

 _Don't taunt him_ , Rey begged Poe and the others. _He may be against the First Order, now, but he still has a hell of a temper._

"And what if he kills us first?" Senno demanded, shrugging off Tath's hand.

"Enough!" Rey said, startling everyone. They looked at her, falling silent. "Ben is not on trial here. None of us are without crime, and, more importantly, we don't have to like each other. In case you've forgotten, Ben was named a traitor by the First Order. He is risking his life walking into this mission, same as us."

Senno scoffed. "If _that_ isn't part of the First Order's plot."

"Rey's right," Poe said. "That's enough. If you don't feel comfortable on the team, I will choose someone else instead."

Poe looked at Rey, and she hoped her gratitude was visible in her eyes. For a moment, Rey worried this would not be the end of the fight, but, thankfully, C-3PO chose that moment to interrupt the meeting.

"Pardon me," he said, "but your transport is ready to depart for Arkanis."

Poe looked around the room as a mother might look at her bickering children. "Is everyone ready to depart?" he asked meaningfully.

Slowly, Senno nodded. Rey took advantage of the momentary distraction to put her hand on Ben's back, only for a second.

"Alright then," Poe said. "Let's get moving. We've got an appointment to keep."

* * *

Rain still fascinated Rey, especially in the spectacular volume that fell on Arkanis when they landed. Grey-black clouds obscured any hint of sunlight, casting the planet in a dreary twilight state almost around the clock. Water fell like a sheet to the ground, and Rey noted that she could only see for a few meters in any direction. But it was perhaps the smell of rain that captivated Rey most of all; it was hard to describe but it smelled organic, wet, and like life.

Ben watched Rey with curiosity. Chandrila did not receive nearly the amount of rain that Arkanis did, but he could not imagine what it would be like to come from as unforgiving of a climate as Jakku and to experience a downpour like this. Rey had experienced rain for the first time on Ahch-To, he remembered. He flexed his hand absently as he recalled their Force-connection and the rain on his black glove.

The Strike Team had fragmented now that they were on the planet's surface. Mabe and Ulno stayed behind with the ship, a rickety shipping vessel with a payload of empty crates. They had feigned engine trouble to excuse their long landing at the service port, and their mission was supposedly a delivery from Coruscant to Gatalenta.

Anikka, Senno, and Poe had gone ahead to scout a way into the meeting chambers. If everything went according to plan, they would unlock and decrypt a straightforward path for Rey, Ben, and Tath. But, for now, they waited for word that they were to go ahead.

Thunder rumbled gently overhead, and Rey looked up at the sky unconsciously. Ben wished he could see her face better, but they had all donned thick hooded cloaks over their civilian disguises, both to protect themselves from the rain and to obscure the more recognizable faces. He admitted he found it useful at the moment, as they had stopped in a courtyard to wait for Poe's word.

The complex where Hux had set up his false meeting sprawled on a hillside in lavish excess. That, at least, was typical of the High Command meetings he had attended in his years with the First Order. As the First Order had sprung from the Centrist movement, it had brought along the expectation of opulence from its first supporters: senators like Carise Sindian and Ro-Kiintor. The High Command officers were used to sumptuous accommodations and refreshment during these meetings, despite their outward profession of minimalism.

Accordingly, in the courtyard surrounding them stood several well-carved sculptures and a variety of rare and beautiful plants. They sat underneath a stone overhang on an intricately decorated marble bench. The landscaping had been carefully designed to funnel rainwater away from the courtyard, allowing no puddles to form despite the frequent downpours.

Unfortunately, none of this could distract Ben from the constant stare of Tath. Since Rey had handed him his lightsaber on the landing pad, he had been under the constant stare of one or more of the Resistance team members. Ben summoned significant patience from somewhere within him, but as the minutes passed, it became harder and harder to bear.

Footsteps approached from behind them, and Ben pulled his hood further over his face. He had the disadvantage of being perhaps the most recognizable of the group, and, he imagined, the most desirable to capture. He had no illusions about it: Hux would relish in the opportunity to kill him. Slowly.

"You there," someone said, "what are you doing?" The three of them turned to find two First Order soldiers standing behind them.

Rey spoke first, without hesitation. "We are guests," she said, with a flourish of her wrist. "We stopped to enjoy the garden."

For a moment, Ben's heart pounded. Jedi mind tricks might work on the more feeble-minded Stormtroopers in the First Order's employ, but to attempt them on the Special Forces was dangerous.

"You stopped to enjoy the garden," the first soldier repeated. "Carry on." He turned and started to walk away. The second soldier hesitated, and then followed.

Astonishment flooded through him as the soldiers walked away. If she could manage that, she was stronger with the Force than even he gave her credit for. Some part of him had always assumed that of the two of them, he was stronger, better trained. Suddenly, he began to doubt it.

Before he could consider Rey's abilities much further, the comm-link in her pocket crackled to life.

"Path opened, sector B," Poe said. "Follow if able."

Ben swallowed as adrenaline rushed through him. Rey acknowledged the communication, looking at her two companions. Ben could make out the sparkle in her eyes, and he was immediately reminded of her ferocity in Snoke's Throne Room.

"Alright, guys," she whispered. "It's go time."

* * *

Rey's heart pounded in her throat as they slipped past at least 15 of the First Order's elite troopers. With each step, she became surer that they would be caught and executed. And yet, so far Poe's team had been successful at deactivating all of the alarms and decrypting the doors.

If their intelligence was correct, Hux and the High Command had set up their meeting in the largest ballroom of the Scaparus Conference Center. It was a conspicuous setting, according to the plans they reviewed. Supposedly, a wall of windows in the room allowed an unprecedented view of the Arkanis Academy on the cliff a few kilometers away. The implications of that view were not subtle, for anyone who knew Armitage Hux's background; his father Brendol had headed the Academy under Imperial direction, and Armitage had followed in his footsteps up until the point that he became the architect of his father's assassination.

Poe's plan, in essence, was simple: Anikka and Senno would hack into the secured computer system from a terminal connected to the ballroom's mainframe. They would, from this terminal, download any data displayed on the officer's monitors during the meeting. Meanwhile, Rey's team would attempt to access the ventilation system to plant a sound-recording device within listening distance of the ballroom. Hopefully, between the two teams, some information could be salvaged that would be of use to the Resistance.

Rey focused on walking normally. Of course, sneaking around would only raise suspicion. By some amount of luck, a reception had been arranged for the original supporters of the First Order on Arkanis, so the corridors were not empty of people. Due to the weather, almost everyone wore cloaks and coats, allowing them to obscure their identities without appearing more suspicious.

Every time someone took a second glance at the three of them, Rey had to remind herself that they couldn't read her mind and know her intention. Walk with purpose, she reminded herself, like you belong here.

Ben ducked around a corner into a small corridor, and Rey followed. Fewer people lingered in this hallway, making them more conspicuous. Rey slipped up to Ben and hooked her arm in his, feigning that they were lovers stepping away from the fray for a quiet moment.

"There's a maintenance hatch down here," he murmured, pretending to kiss her ear.

He swept her down the hallway before pressing her into a small alcove. Tath followed at a distance before slipping into the alcove alongside them. A small maintenance terminal was inset in the left wall.

Rey and Ben parted to let Tath slip through them to access the panel. Ben stepped in front of the panel, somewhat obscuring Tath from casual view.

"There's access to the ventilation system at the end of the hallway," Tath hissed, furiously tapping at the panel. "I'm keying in a work order now that should allow us to access it unquestioned…" He was silent for a moment, tapping. "Acknowledging it… And, done. We should be good."

"Now we've got to get there," Rey said, glancing down the hallway. A trio of soldiers stood casually at the end, chatting. They appeared to not be paying attention, but Rey saw the careful scans they made as people passed.

"Let me go," Tath said. "One person is less conspicuous than three. I'll slip through, plant the bug, and come back. You guys keep watch."

Rey hesitated. She didn't want to send anyone ahead to risk themselves, but she knew Tath was right. "Alright. Be careful. Ben and I will create a diversion."

Ben shot her a look. _We will?!_ She shrugged, and then cocked her head, inviting him to follow her lead.

She stumbled into him, shoving him out into the main corridor. She giggled loudly, falling into him again. A server Droid rolled past with a tray of drinks and she swung up her hand, sending them clattering to the ground. Broken glass sparkled around their feet, and Ben caught her wrist, steadying her.

"Sir, I think she's had enough to drink. Perhaps you should take her to lie down." Rey could see a soldier at her left through her hood. She turned drunkenly, and saw, to her satisfaction, the others had also drawn nearer.

"She'll be alright," Ben said firmly. His voice! Rey had forgotten in the moment, but it was so distinctive. "She just needs a glass of water."

Rey watched Tath slip into the maintenance hatch at the end of the corridor unseen. She swooned, requiring Ben to catch her by the waist.

"Sir," said a second soldier, "you're making a scene."

Ben drew himself to his full height, pulling her very nearly off her feet. "You can't talk to me like that," he snapped. "Don't you know who I am?"

Ben played his part well, she thought, as he proceeded to argue dignity and station with the soldiers. Her heart pounded in her ears, and his words faded to background noise as she watched for Tath to return. Every once in a while she would remember to hiccup or giggle, further rankling the soldiers.

After what seemed like an eternity, Tath emerged from the hatch. It took all of her self-control not to sigh in relief.

"Hey! You there!"

Her eyes must've given it away, she thought. She shouldn't have been watching. The soldiers all turned, drawing their blasters.

Ben let her go, his hand going to his hip.

"Blaster!" she hissed urgently. "Unless you really want to get caught!"

They drew their blasters in unison, felling the three soldiers before they could say another word. Rey raised her communicator to her face. "Poe, we've got a problem."

She looked at Tath and Ben, who were both standing frozen in place. "Alright," she said. "Run now."

They took the word less literally, instead gathering together and purposefully strode out of the hallway and back in the direction they had come. Rey sent Tath out in front and again took Ben's arm. They were about a hundred feet down the main corridor when the alarm sounded.

Chaos erupted. Deafening alarms drowned out the music and conversation, and about two-thirds of the crowd drew weapons. Soldiers spilled into the corridor from all directions.

"We need to split up," Ben said, and they didn't hesitate.

Rey's muscles screamed out to run as her body spilled more and more adrenaline into her veins. She breathed deeply as she willed herself to slip through the party like a patron who was simply ready to go home. Tath and Ben did the same. She hoped they would all make it out alive.

A group of guests walked toward the courtyard, and Rey joined them. They stepped out into the rain, and Rey lost track of her teammates. A couple of soldiers swept past, blasters drawn, and Rey stopped in front of a couple of chatting people. She laughed as the soldiers passed, and the two partygoers gave her a bizarre look but said nothing.

She reached the other side of the courtyard and peered over the edge of the wall, wondering if she could scale it.

In the distance, she heard blaster shots and screams. She looked down the 50-foot drop, realizing she no longer had a choice. Her boots slipped on the wet stone, and her heart skipped a beat. Maker, she hoped her fingers were strong and her nerves stronger.

Above her, she saw flashes as blaster shots flew free. Yelling in at least three languages echoed down the wall at her, and she wondered if it was Poe, or Ben, or the others.

Not soon enough, her boots hit solid ground. She was in a side alley, and if it wasn't already crawling with soldiers, it soon would be. Rey finally took the opportunity to run.

Her feet pounded into the squishy ground, mud splattering up the back of her trousers and her cloak. She weaved around bends in the path, hoping every one was the last.

She careened around a dark corner and collided with someone. They were both thrown to the ground, and Rey rolled and came up in a defensive crouch, lightsaber in hand. The blue blade glowed in the grey light, sizzling as the rain hit the energy beam.

"Rey! It's me."

Rey trembled as her thumb terminated the blade. Ben! She had been so amped up she hadn't even felt him approaching. She stood on gelatinous legs, her breaths coming shallower as relief washed over her.

"Tath is safe in Scaparus Port. He's heading for the saloon to delay his return, so they don't suspect our ship is involved."

"You came back for me," she said, lurching toward him.

"Obviously," he answered, and she could practically hear his smile. "Now come on, we're late."

He led her down a side path that spilled out into a back alley, piled high with refuse and debris. He put his hand on the small of her back as they stepped onto a busy road in the city.

"Poe and the others?" she asked as they tried to fade into the crowd.

He tugged her to a stop in front of a shop window, pretending to admire their wares. Law enforcement droids flew past in the background.

"Safe. When the blaster fire started, the partygoers were eager to join in. In the resulting rain of bolts, it was impossible to tell who to target."

They started walking again. The rain slowed, and Rey wished she could lower her hood to feel the cool water on her face. Instead, she focused on the feel of Ben's hand on her back, warm and comforting.

The comfort was short-lived. A siren sounded, and an emergency alert was broadcast to all of the city's advertisements and other screens. Armitage Hux's face surrounded them, and Ben's hand fell from her. His face tensed, and she felt rage surge inside him.

"There has been an attack on the Conference Center," Hux announced, his voice ringing out clearly from every direction. "The rebels are implicated. A reward is offered for any information that leads to the arrest of any of the most wanted fugitives."

A series of faces flashed by on every screen. Poe, Finn, Rey, Ben.

"These criminals are dangerous and traitors to the First Order. A reward will be paid whether they are captured dead or alive."

Rey flinched. "I think our shipment to Gatalenta is late. Maybe we should hurry it along."

Ben shook with the force of his fury, and for a moment, Rey worried he would draw his lightsaber right there and cut a path through the crowd and up the hill until he faced Hux himself. Her words hung between them, calling him back from the precipice. She wanted to reach out to him, but stopped herself, afraid he would lash out at her too.

Suddenly, the reverie broke, and he drew in a deep breath. "I think you're quite right."

Rey lifted her communicator as she and Ben started toward the port in a hurry. "Rendezvous at the ship. It's time to get out of here."


	21. Chapter 21

Rey and Ben reached a spaceport under fire. Law enforcement speeders were parked haphazardly at every entrance, and red and blue lights cut through the fog like lightning. Orders to stop and submit to questioning echoed through the semi-enclosed building, and Rey imagined at least 20 droids were in there herding the crowds.

"Here's the trap," Ben commented darkly.

Rey palmed her blaster. "Well, we've got to get to the ship. I just hope it has more firepower than a usual shipping vessel."

She gestured for him to follow and darted through the field of speeders to the edge of the nearest landing pad. The spaceport was positioned on the edge of one of Scaparus's many cliffs, with the landing pads built out over the sea. For the second time in as many hours, Rey hoped her nerves would hold out.

She scrambled down the cliff edge to cling to the rock beneath the landing pad. The rock, thankfully, was drier beneath the overhang, but her boots were slick with mud. She glanced back to see Ben following with no hesitation.

Foolishly, Rey looked down at the sea below. Almost 200 feet below her churned a grey-blue sea, choppy waves broken into white crests. The panic she felt on Ahch-To when she fell into the ocean gripped her again for a moment, and her knuckles went white with her grip on the stone. She closed her eyes and forced herself to keep moving - it was either that or she would have to decide if she'd rather die by drowning or by torture at the hand of the First Order.

They shuffled along the rock edge, and Rey could feel her heart pounding even in her fingertips. She clung to it desperately, the cool stone sucking the warmth from her body. Her face was almost against the earth, and she focused on the smell of soil and rain and sea.

"Rey," Ben said, and she stopped. Had they been climbing for seconds or hours? She couldn't be sure.

She looked at him, and he indicated she should look up. Her arms trembling from the effort of holding on, she looked up at the massive metal and concrete construct shielding them from the rain. Numerals were printed in black on the underside of the landing pad above them. Theirs!

Eager to be off the deathly cliff, Rey climbed urgently upward, her boots slipping. She felt dizzy with adrenaline and her mind filled with the image of the churning sea below. Her chest contracted and she could only draw shallow breaths. The air felt heavy with the rain, and the mild chill choked her.

Suddenly, the landing pad was above her. She reached up for the access ladder, praying they would not climb up into the middle of a group of police droids. She hauled herself up the ladder with uncoordinated legs, lurching onto solid ground. Her eyes darted around, seeing a droid at the entrance to the port, further away from her than she was from the ship.

Counting on Ben to follow, she took off at a dead sprint. The droid called out for her to stop, but she hurled herself forward until she tumbled onto the ship. Ben leapt in a moment later, and they both stumbled into each other as the ship took flight unexpectedly.

"Took you long enough," said Poe, a twinkle in his eye despite his tense expression.

"Sorry," Rey said sarcastically, "we had to take a detour."

They grabbed the walls for support as they walked up to the cockpit, the ship angling as it took off.

"Hope this thing has some firepower," Drea commented, indicating some TIE fighters approaching fast.

"Not much!" Ulno cautioned.

"We don't need much," Rey said, an idea occurring to her. "We just have to get past the atmosphere, then we'll jump to light speed."

Everyone looked at her like she had grown a second head. It was considered fantastically dangerous to jump to light speed within a hundred parsecs of any planet due to the increased air traffic and the chances of, well, hitting something.

She remembered their daring landing approach to Starkiller Base at light speed. If they could land from Hyperspace, they could most certainly flee that way as well. "It's a trick I learned from—"

She caught herself just in time, not wanting to say it in front of Ben. "—someone," she finished. "We made our landing approach in hyperdrive, and lived to tell about it."

Ben caught on immediately, despite her hedging. He rolled his eyes. "That _sounds_ like something my father would do," he said. "And in that bucket of junk no less. Lucky you survived."

Poe scoffed. "We're not going to if we don't try it," he said, looking down at the monitor. "Star Destroyer just pulled into orbit."

Rey slid into the cockpit, starting the calculations on the navi-computer. "Give it all you've got, Mabe. I'll be ready when we clear."

The ship creaked as she increased the speed. The roaring of the TIE fighters became audible and then crescendoed. Ulno activated the guns, which rotated into place with a loud clank. Mabe reached above her head, activating the shields not a moment too soon.

The whole ship shuddered as a blast made contact. Ulno returned fire, hoping to dissuade the fighters from getting closer.

"Thirty seconds to clear atmosphere," Mabe said.

Rey worked furiously. Another shot wracked the ship, and then another. Alarms started blaring as sparks rained down from the aft panel. Drea leapt to take Ulno's place as he stood to patch the panel.

"This bucket of bolts isn't gonna hold together against much more," Ulno warned.

Another blast vibrated the ship and smoke poured out of the ceiling. Ben lurched over to assess the situation.

"Ten seconds!" Mabe announced.

Rey finalized the calculations. "Ready to make the jump."

All eyes flashed to the viewport as the glow of the atmosphere faded to black dotted with stars.

"Now!" Mabe cried, and she hit the control in front of her, sealing their fate.

* * *

"They did what?!" Hux snapped, unable to keep the astonishment and frustration from his tone. "They must be insane."

The pilot sounded incredulous as he answered. "I'm telling you, Supreme Leader. They jumped to Hyperspace the second they cleared the atmosphere."

General Bathtor laughed shortly, looking around at the rest of the High Command. "They'll be dead, then, by now."

"Did anyone see their faces?" Hux demanded, turning to the two soldiers waiting to present their report. "Were the Jedi and Kylo Ren with them?"

Neither soldier made eye contact. One of them spoke, tentatively. "No, Supreme Leader. No one saw their faces."

Rage passed through Hux like an icy wave. "I expect a full report within the hour," he said coolly, "with explicit detail on the incompetence that allowed this to happen."

* * *

Adrenaline still dominated Rey's thoughts as the ship dropped out of light speed to make the approach to Gatalenta. The crew had been largely silent during the Hyperspace jaunt, aside from a quick debriefing and celebration that they hadn't been killed.

"I can't believe that worked," remarked Anikka from her position on the ground. She twirled a blade back and forth in her hands idly.

"I can't believe a lot of things about today," Tath said. "For one, Kylo Ren saved my life."

Poe laughed. "Well, that's a sentence I never expected to hear."

They fell back into companionable and exerted silence as they were cleared for landing on Gatalenta. A significant band of Resistance sympathizers existed on Gatalenta, thankfully. They had pre-arranged for landing and quarters, both of which seemed luxurious following the escape they had made.

Warm, muggy air washed over them as they stepped from the ship onto the landing pad. At least four suns sank towards the horizon, turning the clear sky brilliant shades of orange and pink. A heavy floral scent filled Rey's lungs, and she finally allowed her pulse to slow.

They had been granted landing at a private resort in one of the most beautiful regions for the planet. Gatalenta's tea plantations were a popular romantic destination throughout the galaxy, and Rey could see why. In every direction stretched rolling hills lush with tea plants in full bloom. The white flowers dotted the deep green foliage like stars against the dark sky.

The resort's owner greeted them wearing grey robes and a crimson cloak. She led them through the vacant gardens to their rooms, describing how she had taken great care to ensure no guests would be here during their stay and how utmost secrecy had been upheld. Rey was distracted both by her post-adrenaline fog and the soft music of wind chimes throughout the garden.

Rey, Ben, and Poe hesitated in the garden as the others retired to their rooms for showers and rest. Rey's thoughts drifted on the tropical air, and she could understand the appeal of the resort of a romantic getaway. She suppressed the thoughts, if temporarily, knowing the subject of the impending conversation would be…less pleasant.

"So, Dameron," Ben said, his tone sharp, "is there a jail cell here, too, or does the Strike Team have to take shifts guarding my door?"

Poe bristled. "No jail cell," he said, a pang of what sounded like regret in his voice. "Since your presence here is my and Rey's responsibility alone, I thought she and I could take the guard shifts."

Rey expected Ben's face to betray more anger at the idea of being guarded, even now. But, she felt his thought at the same time it occurred to her. Now the trick was not to appear too eager.

"No need, Poe," Rey said, hoping to manage the right degree of resignation. "I begged you to allow him along. I can guard him all night."

Poe looked at the both of them. Rey's thoughts were straying again, and Ben's thoughts weren't helping. He was taunting her with exactly what they could do with a night alone together. She suppressed a shudder as a wave of arousal prickled down her spine.

He regarded them suspiciously, but after a moment sighed, his shoulders dropping. "Alright. If you volunteer, I won't argue." He started to walk away but stopped after a step or two. "If you change your mind, Rey, let me know."

She nodded once. "I will, Poe. Now, go get some rest. And shower. You stink."

He laughed, shaking his head. "You too, Rey."

She and Ben watched him start down the corridor. Ben continued to assault her with images of what exactly he was going to do to her the moment they were in the room together. Her breath caught in her throat as flashes of him pressing her against the wall, then throwing her on the bed, then kissing her ravenously intermingled with the intoxicating scent of tea and paradise in her mind.

Was there an aphrodisiac quality to the air, or was it just the rush of their near escape from Arkanis?

She pushed him forward roughly. If he was going to torture her with promises, she was going to make him deliver. They entered the corridor of suites and Rey shoved him against a doorway. She threw herself on him, covering his mouth with hers. She demanded him hungrily with her mouth, and for a moment he was passive with surprise.

* * *

Ben pushed Rey off him, breaking the unexpected and public kiss, and she almost hissed with frustration. "Rey!" he said, panic rising in his chest. "They'll see!"

"Don't care," she gasped, and those were perhaps the most arousing words he had ever heard. She pressed his mouth back against hers and asserted her tongue into his mouth, and he returned in kind until the lack of oxygen made him dizzy. She fumbled blindly for the door latch, and when she found it, they nearly tumbled backward into the room.

She started tearing her clothes off without breaking the kiss. He hadn't observed this kind of hunger in her before, and he welcomed a Rey as desperate for him as he was for her. He grunted into her mouth as his arousal made itself known and he reached down to adjust his pants to make it more bearable.

When he focused on her again, her chest was bare, her nipples pink and tight on her freckled breasts. She leaned down to tug off her trousers, and he sucked in a deep breath as her mouth left his. He took advantage of the brief separation to tear his shirt off, and when they met again her warm skin pressed against him. Goosebumps prickled down his arms and he felt blood rushing to his cock.

His hands roamed her demandingly. His left hand settled on a breast, feeling its soft weight in his hand. He rolled her nipple between his thumb and index finger, and she gasped around his lips in surprise. The sound sent a hot and cold wave across his skin, and he could feel his erection growing. Maker, the sensations she gave him were _unreal_.

His right hand slipped between her legs and— _mercy_ —she was already wet for him. If he had known even for a moment as a teenager what sex would feel like, he never would have agreed to train as a Jedi.

She pulled away from the kiss slowly, drawing his bottom lip out between her teeth. His finger lazily stroked her clit even as she pushed him to step back so she could tear off his pants. He stood there, breathing raggedly, exposed, as she pushed his trousers off of his hips. She stepped back and they both clumsily kicked off their shoes, stumbling towards the bed.

He felt like he was drowning in the sound of her throaty breathing, and he grabbed at her greedily, desperate to feel her warmth and her wetness again. She smirked at him, even as her pupils were blown wide and black with her own arousal, and shoved him back until his knees hit the bed and he fell back onto the mattress, letting his breath out in a rush.

He stared at the ceiling for a moment, trying to get control of himself, but then Rey's hand encircled his hardening cock and he knew it was futile. The world seemed to spin as a wave of carnal pleasure overwhelmed him, and for a moment he lost track of the room.

The feeling of something on his wrist startled him back to reality, and he realized Rey was tying him to the bed with his shirt. He tried to snatch his hand away from her, but she had already secured it. He reached out to grab her chin and she caught his other wrist, forcing it back above his head.

"What are you doing, Rey?" His voice was gravelly with lust. Despite the unexpected shift in the room, he couldn't deny it was doing something for him. He allowed her to win their little wrestling match over his wrist and felt her secure it to the bed with another piece of clothing.

Her tongue traced a circle around his nipple as she drew away, and he shuddered. "I want to see what power feels like," she purred, and his cock twitched. She didn't need the restraints to have power over him—she already had it.

She crawled up between his legs without breaking eye contact. He felt like he could fall into her eyes, dark and lustful and emotive. They twinkled with ferocity as she reached out to trace his erection with a feather-light touch. He groaned and pulled against the restraints reflexively, wanting to touch her or stroke himself, anything to relieve the frantic need that washed over him.

"Now, now, Ben," she scolded. "I'm in charge."

And she was. She worked her hands over his cock lightly at first, working him up into a frenzy. Pressure and tension built in his core and the only thought he could form was the need for her silky wetness around him.

Instead, though, she did something he had not dared to ask her for. She leaned down slowly, maintaining the intense eye contact, and sucked the head of his cock into her mouth.

A guttural sound ripped from his throat as her lips encircled him. Her tongue teased him as her hands started to work more firmly on his shaft and he couldn't have imagined the sensations before. He wasn't even sure he was processing them now.

"Force, yes," he gasped.

She pulled her mouth away from him, and the air felt cold where the warmth had been. He wanted to beg for her to continue, but he had to focus on breathing.

"Did you like that?" she asked, and he was reminded of a predator toying with its prey.

"Yes," he managed between breaths.

"Good," she said, but then she settled back between his legs. She sat on the mattress, spreading her legs so that the back of each knee rested on his thighs and her feet rested beside his hips. He was granted a view of the curls between her legs and could faintly smell her sex as her legs opened to him.

 _Maker_ , what he would give to touch her.

He watched her as she lifted her fingers to her mouth and sucked two in, reminding him immediately of what she had done to his cock and what he had done to her on the fuel station when he had knelt before her. Each rush of arousal felt like euphoria, now, and every inch of his skin felt flushed.

She slid her fingers between her own legs, and he watched her tense as she brushed her clit. "Look at me, Ben," she encouraged as she started to masturbate openly. "Watch me come in front of you."

As if he could tear his eyes away. She was feeling the effects of her teasing, too, if her facial expression was any indication. He could tell she wanted to make it last, but she had trouble controlling herself. Every time she started rubbing her clit it seemed she could barely stop herself just before her orgasm. Every time, though, she remembered herself and slowed, prolonging his delicious torture.

"Oh, Ben," she moaned, and he wondered if the others would hear. "I want you inside me."

 _Let me. Let me, please_. He wanted to beg her but couldn't find his voice. His mouth was dry, his throat choked. If she wasn't careful he would not be able to keep himself from coming.

He could hear how wet she was as she moved her fingers, and suddenly his cock was absolutely throbbing. He didn't know how the rest of his body could function because it seemed all of his blood was in his dick.

She drew in a deep breath, and he knew it was happening before she said it aloud. "I'm going to—" she managed, and then just a deep, throaty groan.

Her face during her orgasm was exquisitely beautiful. He had never fully appreciated it before, having always been either preoccupied with his own pleasure and the sensation of the contractions around his cock, or preoccupied with the fact that his tongue was on her cunt. She forgot him entirely for the duration of her orgasm, her eyes so obviously beyond this world. His erection seemed to scream out in indignity—he needed to be inside of her. Now.

When she came back down from her high, she seemed to have totally abandoned her game. She crawled over him, releasing his wrists from their restraints. He grabbed her shoulders, probably too tightly, and rolled so that he was on top. He couldn't wait any longer and shoved her legs apart, plunging into her.

He pushed her legs toward her head as he began to fuck her hard. She was warm, and silky, and wet, and tight, and so many other things that he didn't have words for. The sounds and smells of their sex completely overwhelmed him and he wondered how anyone who tasted this abject ecstasy could ever give it up.

He could tell from the hitch in her breathing that his angle was just right. He knew there was one spot inside her that drove her mad, and, if he could hold out long enough, he would bring her to another orgasm.

Luckily for both of them, he didn't have to hold out long at all.

She moaned wordlessly and he felt her tense around him. That was too much. His orgasm hit him like a blow to the chest. They both vocalized together as pleasure crashed over them. She grabbed at the sheets, pulling at the fabric as he spilled into her.

He had never come so hard in his life. His limbs felt weak as the orgasm passed, and he laid atop her, fighting to catch his breath. She clung to him as if to a life raft at sea, and he could only hear his heart racing in his ears.

It probably took five or more minutes for him to regain his sense of being. He sighed and rolled to the side of her, allowing her to snuggle close in his arms again. She tucked her head under his chin, and, despite their sweaty skin, he had never been more comfortable.

"Guess what?" she murmured, and he could hear the sleep in her tone. It was trying to claim him, too, but he was fighting it so he could enjoy every last second of holding her like this.

"Mmm?" he answered, his eyelids heavy.

"I don't have to leave."

His contentment was the last thing he remembered before he drifted off to sleep, his beloved tucked into his arms.


	22. Chapter 22

Rey started awake to the sound of a pounding on the door. Ben stirred beside her, less briskly. She wondered if he had been awoken this way many times by various troopers in the First Order. Her heart pounded in her chest, however, and she scrambled out of bed to gather her clothes.

"Rey!" Poe snapped through the door. "Rey, where are you?"

"Hold on!" she answered, yanking on her trousers and top. Ben rubbed his eyes sleepily, watching her.

Poe continued pounding, despite her answer. Angrily, she strode over to the door and opened it just enough for her to slip through. She closed the door behind her with a click, drawing up to her full height before a glowering Poe.

"I thought you said you were going to guard him," Poe said accusingly.

Rey had honestly expected herself to have more of a visceral reaction to her relationship being revealed to her friends. Instead, she just felt indignation that he reacted this way. Obviously, he intended for her to spell it out in no uncertain terms.

She huffed sharply, deciding acid honesty was the best approach. "I didn't leave his side. All night."

Realization passed through his eyes, but he controlled his face remarkably well. "Kriff, Rey," he said. "You're fucking him?"

The new leader of the Resistance certainly had a way with words. "So what if I am?" Rey said. "Since when are our personal relationships a matter of discussion?"

It looked like it took all of his self-control not to hit her. "Rey, I don't know if you hit your head in the crash, but that is _Kylo Ren_."

Rey steadied herself with a deep breath. "Poe, I don't ask questions about who you spend the night with. Even if Finn does show up to breakfast sometimes wearing your clothes."

That hit him in the gut. His eyes widened as he searched for the right words to counter without seeming defensive. "They're men's clothes, Rey, what makes you think they're mine—"

"Or the jacket that you lovingly stitched back together after Kylo Ren's lightsaber ripped through it," she interrupted. "That was the jacket you gave him, wasn't it?"

Poe was seething. "Or it's just his only jacket," he said.

Rey glared directly into his eyes. "Sure. And you're just as likely to believe that I slept on the floor last night. Completely platonically."

Almost as if someone had stepped between them, they both stopped to reel in their tempers. This was far from constructive, and it was heading into dangerous territory.

Poe broke the silence first. "How in the _hell_ did a nearly fatal crash turn into…whatever this is?" he asked, both incredulously and accusingly.

Despite herself, Rey blushed deeply. This time, she struggled to find words. "Um, it may have been happening…before that?"

Poe looked like he had been slapped in the face, and then recognition passed over him. "When Leia ordered us not to go on missions alone anymore…That was because of you? She knew?"

Rey sighed. "Kind of. I mean she didn't know, but I think she suspected."

Silence again, and then Poe spoke in a rush. "Do you love him?"

That was the question Rey wasn't prepared to answer. That brought the visceral reaction. Her heart stuttered as she calculated his possible reaction to the possible answers. Was it better or worse if she loved him?

Quietly, Rey answered, "...Yes."

Poe examined her for a long time as if trying to decide for himself how he felt about that. "You love him," he repeated softly. He smiled, but it was an empty expression that didn't quite reach his eyes. "I guess I expected that it was just a physical thing."

Rey didn't say anything. There was so much she wanted to say: that she had thought that at first too, that there was a whole layer he was unaware of regarding the Force-bond, that she wasn't in love with Kylo Ren but Ben Solo. Poe didn't even know Ben Solo yet, he hadn't given that idea a chance.

"Is that why he came back?" Poe asked.

Rey sighed. She hoped he didn't know how directly he was playing into her insecurities. "I don't know."

He swallowed. All his rage seemed gone. "I won't tell anyone if you don't want me to."

Rey's lips tightened as she considered that offer. "No, I should be honest with everyone. Although…" She paused, deciding to try and get something out of the revelation. "I don't know that I relish the idea of sharing a jail cell with him."

Poe laughed shortly. "I suppose I can consider letting him move in with you—how deep of a sleeper are you, anyway?"

She shook her head. "Not deep enough to miss it if he tries to kill everyone," she said, hoping her tone came across as more teasing than sharp. She still fought the urge to be defensive about Ben.

Poe sighed. "I'll think about it."

They both stared at each other. It struck Rey at that moment how fierce their friendship was for such a short time. They fought, sure, but she suddenly wasn't sure why she was so worried about him finding out. He wouldn't abandon her for this.

A small smirk crept over Poe's face. "You should probably go tell him that I am not kicking you both out of the Resistance." He shook his head again, incredulous. "Kriff, I can't believe you're sleeping with Kylo Ren."

"Ben Solo," she reminded him gently.

"Go," Poe said, but he didn't flinch at the name, which was a step forward.

She smiled, hoping some gratitude was apparent in her eyes. He turned away from her, and she turned to slip back through the door.

Ben sat on the edge of the bed, waiting for her. He had pulled on some pants, but clearly was not planning on rescuing her from that conversation, as he had not put on any other clothes. He looked up at her, and when his eyes met hers, she felt her heart pull towards him.

"How'd you lie your way out of this one?" he asked. He pouted a little. He had been much more eager than she had to reveal their relationship.

She shrugged guiltily. "I didn't."

Looking at him there on the bed, it was easier to want to be public. If she could have more mornings like this, looking at him with sleep in his eyes and tousled hair, it was easier to risk the fallout.

He looked at her with abject surprise, which, on the less-than-expressive face of her lover was mainly an expression of the eyes. "You told him?"

She took on an unaffected air, stepping up to a mirror on the wall to check her reflection and fix her hair. "Yeah."

He couldn't quite believe her, even as he could feel her honesty. "What did you tell him?"

"Well, he figured part of it out. He said, and I quote: 'Kriff, Rey, you're fucking him?!'" She continued to adjust her appearance, but she looked for his reaction in the mirror.

"Eloquent," he commented.

She smiled. "I thought so, too. But, I let him know that he was right about that."

"Just that?" he asked. She could feel his possessiveness start to rise.

"No. He asked me if I love you."

"And?"

Her smile widened. "I said yes."

He didn't say anything, so she turned around to look at him. His eyes were dark and soft, but his face was forcibly steady. Her whole being was drawn to him like a magnet. The power he had over her was incredible.

"I don't know why you even bothered with your hair," he said gruffly, huskily, and pulled her into his arms.

* * *

"I told you," Rose said, a self-satisfied expression on her face.

Finn's disbelief was almost comical. "So she just...She's sleeping with him? Since when?"

Poe shrugged. "I don't know exactly. Since before the crash."

"She loves him," Rose corrected them.

They sat in the command lounge alone, cooling caf forgotten on the table before them. Poe felt guilty discussing this development behind Rey's back, but he couldn't hide it from them after her blatant reveal on Gatalenta.

"How?" Finn said. "He tortured her. He tortured us. He killed Han Solo. How?"

Poe shook his head. Rose smirked but said nothing. Poe reached out to grab his caf, sipped it, and cringed when he realized it was cold. Finn looked nauseated.

"Maybe we should see this as a ringing endorsement. We all trust Rey, right? If she loves him, maybe that's our clue to take his redemption more seriously," Rose said.

Poe was more cynical. "I don't know what passed between the two of them, but I am reluctant to trust that it will extend to cover the rest of us. If Rey is what induced his...'redemption' is there a possibility he is loyal to her alone?"

Finn, as always, jumped straight for the worst-case scenario. "Or Rey's trust in him is misplaced. In case you've all forgotten, I've been in the midst of the First Order since I was old enough to talk. That kind of doctrine is not so easily abandoned. I've seen people turn a whole lot farther for a whole lot less, and it's never lasted."

Poe looked down at his mug, suddenly wishing it was filled with alcohol instead. He pushed the cup away from him. "Either way, I don't think we have a good option. I think we have to trust Rey and rely on her to be the gatekeeper against any betrayal."

Finn shook his head. "That's a lot to put on one barely-trained Jedi," he said.

Poe shrugged. "It's a lot to put on anyone. But Rey brought him here. She brought this on herself."

* * *

Ben Solo sat at the table in the dining hall, acutely aware of the eyes on him from all directions. This was his first outing into the general Resistance areas, and the members at large were hesitant to trust him. The members of their mission to Arkanis, at least, had softened towards him. But still, none of them were willing to sit with him.

Rey, to her credit, endured it all wordlessly. Sure, she had a grumpy expression on her face that dared a single person to say a word or even give her a look, but she still managed a smile every time he caught her eye.

Truthfully, he was taking this whole transition harder than he anticipated. He hadn't expected to be able to just waltz into the Resistance and be welcomed with open arms, but he hadn't fully realized the emotional toll of being distrusted and watched at all times.

Except he did, and that reminder hit him like a blow to the gut. He remembered his parents' whispers when they thought he couldn't hear. He remembered how they began to regard him with fear and mistrust.

His first instinct was to repress those emotions, but Rey reached out to take his hand across the table. Her touch softened the pain instantly, like a shot of analgesic. He took a deep breath. Rey's voice, full of emotion, echoed in his mind.

 _You're not alone_ , he had told her, feeling the vast chasm of her loneliness open up before him.

 _Neither are you_.

Rey provided the steadiness he needed. She understood without question that his conflict could not be extinguished in a day or even a year. She understood that it would always be part of him, and, more than that, she accepted it.

He looked up as a silhouette approached. Unbidden, rage rose in his chest, and he wanted to lash out at whomever it was just to preempt any nasty words.

FN-2187—Finn, he corrected himself—sat down at the table, next to Rey, and a little too far from Ben to be natural. Finn glared at him for a second before turning to Rey.

"Poe told us," Finn said.

"I figured," Rey answered. "There is not much else you three would have a 'secret' meeting about."

Finn turned to look at Ben. Ben steadied his face, grateful for the years upon years of practice he had with blank expressions. He pulled his hand away from Rey's even as he struggled to keep the defensiveness at bay. From the way Finn looked at Rey, Ben knew the physical contact could only escalate the situation.

"They said you're going by Ben Solo now. Is that true?" Finn asked. His tone was accusatory, and he continued before Ben could answer. "Because in my days as a Trooper, a man could die for uttering that name aloud, even if you were nowhere around."

Ben swallowed sharply. That rule had not been created by him but by Snoke, who believed reminders of his past and his family could only breed weakness. Snoke had also hoped to suppress the knowledge that Kylo Ren was the son of the famous Organa/Solo coupling, worried that the legacy of Skywalker blood would corrupt his intentions.

Ben decided not to address that statement, as he could not do so civilly. Instead, he said, "I knew, back on Jakku. I knew that you didn't fire, that you were dangerous to the ranks. I said nothing."

Rey looked between them. She did not know the specifics of Finn's defection, of course, nor the events leading up to it.

"I could feel your revulsion at killing innocent people, and I remembered a time I felt the same way."

Finn looked at him with disgust. As Rey often said, always the wrong words. Ben cast his eyes to the table. "I'm sorry for what I did to you," he said. "I know that doesn't change anything. But, it's true."

Finn took a deep, steadying breath. "No, it doesn't. But it's something."

Finn stood, turning his attention back to Rey. "I don't trust him, but I do trust you."

Acid rose in his throat—no, Rey's throat. It was odd how sometimes their stronger emotions and sensations spilled seamlessly across the bond, and other times it was as if they were normal people. Neither of them could predict when it would happen, and he wondered if it would continue to disorient him forever.

"However you feel, Finn, it's rude to talk about someone in front of them like they're not even there," Rey snapped.

Finn cast pouty eyes at Rey, and then a more sinister gaze at Ben. "I'm sorry. But I don't trust you. And I refuse to call you by the name given to you by the father you murdered."

Finn's words slashed him like a knife across his skin. Ben could not bear it. He stood, and guilt and anger panged him as Finn flinched back from him. Ben stood there for a second or two, regarding Finn, seeing himself through Finn's eyes—dark, tall, dangerous, threatening—and then turned to return to the quarters he and Rey shared.

Rey's indignation flashed through him before fading. His own emotions drowned hers. Is that how he was always going to be seen here? Was his biggest mistake going to be the trump card everyone threw in his face to explain their treatment of him? They couldn't understand. How could they?

He saw it in their eyes. They all thought he killed Han Solo out of misplaced, teenaged hatred. They all saw the man that mentored young pilots, who devoted his heart and souls to children that weren't even his own. They thought he was jealous.

Of course, he was. They could never understand the pain of having a father who was more of a father to everyone else than he was to you. They could never understand wanting nothing more than to follow in their father's footsteps only to be rebuked at every turn in favor of other children.

More than that, they could never understand the feeling of being feared by their own father. Ben Solo had felt that for years upon years. Not at the end, ironically. Han Solo felt nothing but disappointment and failure at the end. No, he feared his own son when Ben was only a child, just beginning to feel the Force and to hear Snoke and to reach out for comfort and understanding and hope.

Shame rose like nausea in his throat. Snoke had realized all of these thoughts and the power they had over him. Snoke had used these to manipulate him into believing the only way to overcome this weakness was to end Han Solo's life.

He tasted bile and stumbled into their quarters. How had he been so malleable to Snoke's intentions? Now, in the clarity of the aftermath, it was so obvious.

Snoke had never intended Kylo Ren to rise through the ranks, to take his place. Kylo Ren was designed as a tool, a ticking time-bomb, meant to be detonated in whatever direction Snoke decided best. Snoke had tested his volatility, in small ways at first, and had provoked him to kill Han Solo as the ultimate test of his manipulation.

Ben lurched into the 'fresher as his stomach heaved. He clutched the edges of the toilet as he vomited, shame and revulsion at himself washing through him in icy waves. When his stomach was empty, he sat back against the wall, staring at the dingy grey tile.

He remembered his mother's words. Han forgives you. Why? How could his father forgive him for the very action no one else could? He couldn't even forgive himself.

He hauled himself up on shaky legs to brush his teeth. His stomach still clenched uncomfortably as he regarded his clammy countenance in the mirror. How could Rey accept him?

Robotically, he turned on the water shower, peeling his suddenly sweaty clothes from his skin. He stepped under the scalding water, letting it cleanse his outside as he wished his soul could be cleansed.

Rey accepted him because she felt him for what he is. That thought washed over him, warm and cold at once, and again he felt pleasantly numb. As his mind quieted, he felt her presence again, concerned but recognizing his need for solitude. For whatever reason, if it was Snoke's machinations or some grand destiny, the Force tied them together with a glowing tether. Their bond had become his only comfort, and every day he realized more strongly, he had no choice in his redemption. He was tied to Rey forever.

She had no choice but to accept him, he realized starkly. The Force-bond had done this to her as much as it had to him.

Would he ever exist as more than a pawn in someone else's game?

An almost physical silence pushed through his mind, and he knew Rey was there, at the door to the 'fresher, hesitant. He turned off the shower, but couldn't move. Instead, he looked at the drain as the water swirled down it. His hair hung around his face, dripping.

He could hear his gasping breaths, feel his heart beating in his chest. Finn's image of him overwhelmed his mind. Kylo Ren hulked over him, dark eyes flashing with red light. Bloodthirsty, murderous energy radiated towards him as a black void reached out in tendrils to consume him.

Rey tugged at him across the bond. He wondered what she could feel from him, what she could see. Sometimes, the Force granted him the ability to control their connection, and now he was granted the ability to acquiesce to her tugging.

Rey's image of him dissolved Finn's. This version of Kylo Ren was the same as Ben Solo. Before him stood a man, not a monster. Loneliness and pain radiated instead of violence and anger. But also, more tentatively, there was tenderness and love and curiosity. Temper flashed in his eyes but faded to sparkling sarcasm, and passion flared in his chest that was equal parts dark and light. This man made mistakes and regretted them, was both a victim and someone who overcame abuse. He stood strong against the buffeting wind despite the cracks that ran through him.

Rey's vision unfroze him, and he stepped out of the shower. He dried his skin with a towel and pulled on his pants and trousers. Again, he looked at his reflection, trying to see himself through his own eyes.

"You can't leave Kylo Ren behind you completely, just as you could never leave Ben Solo," Rey whispered, but whether aloud or through the Force he could not tell. "And that's okay."

And then, he heard her voice aloud, for sure, slightly muffled by the door. "I'm glad the Force brought us together."

He couldn't find his voice to answer, and he couldn't find his emotions either. Instead, his eyes traced the scar in his reflection, down his face, down his chest. Rey lingered a moment by the door before slipping away.

Who was he, the monster or the man? When the dust settled from the war within him, would the Light or the Dark reign triumphant?

* * *

Supreme Leader Armitage Hux sat in his throne room, surrounded by crimson guards. He brooded, staring at a datapad in his hand. After their embarrassing failure to capture the Resistance spies on Arkanis, the First Order had been struggling to determine the best power move to make a statement.

But Hux didn't want to make a statement. He wanted to exterminate the Resistance once and for all.

Recent intelligence suggested the Resistance had a stronghold on Vorill Four, but the First Order had yet to confirm it. The High Command was less concerned with the rebels than Hux, choosing instead to focus their attention on forcing additional systems to their rule. Reassignment of military units to paramilitary governments on newly conquered planets was beginning to take priority over assaults on Resistance cells.

Hux disagreed with this reprioritization. The First Order could never maintain rule while the Resistance still chipped away at their power bit by bit. All they had to do was to look at the example the Empire had set. Even when the galaxy had fallen to their power, rebels instrumented a downfall that ended in the sands of Jakku.

Jakku. The sands of the Empire's downfall birthed the scavenger rat turned Jedi. That was not insignificant, especially if he could be persuaded to believe the Force had any significant control over the destiny of the galaxy. Jakku swallowed the Empire's power in its sandy wastes and regurgitated the scavenger girl, as strong with the Force as Kylo Ren, as its answer to the First Order.

The implications of this cycle haunted Hux's dreams. Kylo Ren had failed to kill the Jedi, and, he suspected, had followed her back to the rebel nest on Vorill Four. Hux would not fail as he had. Hux would crush the Jedi to dust in his fist and return her to the sands of her desert wasteland.

Fire boiled in his veins at the thought. If Leia's death had not broken Kylo Ren to a simpering boy, the murder of his Jedi obsession would. Only after he watched the Jedi torn limb-from-limb would Hux grant his death. Slowly.

Hux sighed, pushing his fantasy out of his mind. No. He would settle for killing them all instantly with the destruction of Vorill Four. Perhaps the Force would be useful to Hux once if it granted Kylo Ren eternal suffering after his death.

The loud thunk of the elevator stopping startled Hux from his thoughts. The doors slid open to reveal a general and an admiral, making the long walk to the throne purposefully. Hux straightened, his pulse quickening.

"Supreme Leader," the general said as both officers fell to one knee at the foot of the throne. "The preparations are complete. We are ready to strike on Vorill Four"

"The fleet is at your command, Supreme Leader," the admiral agreed.

Ferocity flashed through Hux like lightning. "Excellent," Hux said. "We strike on Vorill Four."


	23. Chapter 23

The world burned around them.

Sparks rained from clouds of billowing smoke. The ground shook as explosions tore through earth and stone. They choked on the air, smothered in the waste of their own destruction.

Ben woke with a start, sweat plastering his hair to his face. He couldn't catch his breath, his chest felt tight and hollow like he had run until he couldn't run any farther. He sat in tangled sheets, his heart pounding, waiting for his lungs to fill with air again.

Rey watched him from the bed beside him. She had been awake, he realized. She did not seem startled or upset by his sudden awakening. She just looked resigned, exhausted.

"I felt it, too," she said softly, taking his hand in hers. He relished in the contact, like a handhold on the edge of a cliff. She pulled him back to solid ground; his pulse began to slow

"I think it's the future," he said, surprised his voice was even.

Rey tugged at his hand, and he laid back down, wrapping her in his arms. She tucked her arm under his, and they held each other for a long, silent moment.

"I know it is," Rey said.

He considered that for a moment. When and where and how were not questions often answered by Force visions. Snoke had taught him to believe in them wholly, but with caution. They would come true, but often not in the way the Force-sensitive were led to believe.

"The First Order is hunting us like dogs," Ben murmured. "And I don't mean the Resistance. I mean us."

Rey didn't answer. She could feel it too, he knew. How could she not? The Force barely revealed anything else anymore, besides the looming presence of Supreme Leader Hux. He may not be a Force user, but he warped the galaxy around him just the same.

Rey stirred in his arms, and he released her. She sat up, reaching out for her lightsaber, and his. She turned them over in her hands thoughtfully, sitting up.

He watched her, for once uncertain of what she was thinking. Her face was contorted in consideration, concentration.

"Two cracked Kyber crystals," she said.

He hadn't thought about that before, but of course it was true. She must have repaired Luke's saber to create the one she used now. Where else would she have found a Kyber crystal?

She handed him his saber, not taking her eyes off of her own. She opened the hilt and removed the crystal, split in half where their tug-of-war had torn it. It glowed blue in her hand, and, after a moment, she held it out to him in offering.

Ben opened his palm, allowing her to drop the two halves of the crystal into it. To his surprise, it hummed in his hand, glowing blue still.

Finally understanding, he opened his own saber's hilt, taking the red crystal in his fingers. It hummed too, at a slightly different frequency than Rey's. In his fingers, it shimmered an aggressive crimson.

He set his own crystal in Rey's palm, where it continued to glow. She looked at it in her palm, feeling its vibration, before looking up to meet his gaze.

"We are stronger together," she said. Reverently, she lifted one half of his crystal and he lifted a half of her own. They exchanged them, holding one blue half and one red half in their hands, bathed in vaguely purple glow.

"I beat you in battle because I could access your skills through the Force-connection," she said. "You defeated Snoke because you could access my compassion."

He looked at the crystal halves, considering. Supposedly, a Kyber crystal would only glow for the Jedi it chose as its master. The Sith teachings encouraged bleeding the crystals to access their power. Opposite methods to achieve the same goal: a crystal through which to channel energy. Rey and Ben had been groomed the same ways, Ben realized. He had been bled to channel his power, and Rey had chosen her path.

Ben had never adhered to the ideas of the Sith, except where they taught ways to channel anger and pain to power. Anger and pain he had in excess, and the Jedi did not bother to acknowledge ways to overcome those obstacles. Bury them, ignore them, don't feel them. That was the advice of the Jedi.

Under Luke, he had believed that if he had been good enough, he would transcend past those emotions, Under Snoke, he had been encouraged to ignore them until he needed them for power in battle. Now, he was beginning to understand the truth. As long as he was human, he could not transcend them, and humans were not made to be split in two.

Rey took the two halves of the crystals she held in her hand and replaced them in her saber hilt. She closed it, thumbing the button with hesitation.

Steeling herself, she ignited it. For a moment, Ben was afraid it would malfunction, or even explode. Instead, the blade crackled, like his, and flickered unsteadily between red and blue.

"I don't think they're right. The Sith or the Jedi," Rey said. "I think you can draw power from anger and pain, and from compassion and peace. I don't think you have to choose."

He replaced his crystal halves in his hilt and ignited his own blade, to similar effect. They sat in the flickering light for a moment, before they both deactivated their blades.

"There was such a thing as the Grey Jedi," Ben said. He had the advantage of knowing more about the Jedi than her, ironically. It had been part of his teaching, back when he was a student of Luke's. "They believed that there was a middle ground, a way of viewing the Force that didn't rely on Light and Dark."

"The Unifying Force," Rey said. She knew more than he expected. She would not have learned that from Luke.

"Yes, among other things," he said.

"If we live through this, no matter what happens between us, that is the lesson we should pass down to the Force-sensitive," Rey said.

They were silent for a moment, dread rising around them like a shadow. They looked at each other. Ben wondered if he was alone with her for the last time.

Rey must have had the same thought, because she pulled him into a rough and desperate kiss, dropping her saber on the bedsheets. Her teeth clashed against his as she tried to pull him closer, closer. He dropped his saber with hers and wrapped his fingers into her hair, closing around a handful and holding her, his.

They wrestled for domination, for closeness, as they kissed until their lungs gave out. They gasped uneven breaths around each other, breathing as much air as the other's breath. Ben felt warm tears on his face, and he wasn't sure if they were hers or his own.

Rey tore at his trousers and before he realized it, they were joined, still mostly clothed. They fucked desperately, just trying to feel each other. They fucked loudly, roughly, biting and clawing, trying to overcome the emotional pain with physical. She moaned and cried out as her orgasm was ripped from her.

"Ben," she cried over and over.

"Rey," was all he could answer.

As suddenly as they had started, they were both spent, panting. She held his shoulders with dug in fingernails, as if she were worried she would be torn from him. Still, the dread hung around them in the air like fog.

Finally, Rey let go of him. She felt the time ticking past as surely as he did. They both stood and dressed in their fighting clothes: Rey in grey and Ben in black. They each hooked their lightsaber on their belt and looked at each other.

"Let's warn the others," Ben said, "the forecast on Vorill Four calls for fire."

* * *

Flashes, screams, and blood.

That was the reality of battle, not calculated movements, not skill in combat, not even skill at marksmanship. No. Battle raged like a beast around every living thing as they drowned in adrenaline, in panic, in asphyxiating smoke.

All he could hear was Rey's feral screams. White Stormtroopers poured around him, clashing with brown-clad Resistance soldiers. Rey in her grey tunic and trousers glowed before him like a beacon of light.

There was no way they could win this fight. The First Order outnumbered them ten-to-one. TIE fighters roared above them, tearing burning swaths through the battle. AT-M6 walkers shook the ground with every step.

The Resistance would go down in a blaze of glory.

Evacuation had been their only hope, but that too had been dashed when the _Supremacy II_ dropped out of Hyperspace to guard the empty space. They had been trapped here, cornered like animals. This is how hope would die, crushed to dust beneath the machine of order.

Rey didn't see it that way. She fought tooth-and-nail against the First Order fighters, savage and strong. She had no finesse, but she made up for it with raw power, like she had on Starkiller base when she had left him bleeding on the ground. She positively burned with determination, anger, ferocity.

Ben cut his enemies down as he had been taught. Method, calculation, order. The irony was not lost on him. Their flickering blades finally reflected the truth - neither could claim the purity of their predecessors, of the Sith nor the Jedi. Passion and compassion bled together.

Ben harbored only one last desire before his inevitable demise: to strike down Armitage Hux as he had Snoke, to watch the light die from his eyes the way the light must have gone from his mother's. Hux may have the rest of the galaxy fooled, but Ben saw his fingerprints all over that assassination, and he would have his revenge.

 _We have to get to the_ Supremacy, Rey's thoughts broke through, surprising him.

He imagined Hux sitting on Snoke's throne, and imagined his blade cutting through the man like Rey's had his predecessor. Rage prickled up his spine, spilling out as strength in each slash of his saber.

 _Yes,_ he agreed, but he worried what Rey would say if she knew his true intention. Revenge was a very dark grey.

 _We have to find a ship_ , she said.

Wordlessly, he showed her a TIE fighter. She understood his intentions a moment before he acted. He reached out, knocking the gunner unconscious with the Force. The pilot didn't realize it right away, and Ben did the same to him before he realized it. He felt Rey's disapproval as he took over the controls, landing the TIE fighter a few meters away.

Despite her hesitation with his methods, Rey did not hesitate to start cutting a path to the fighter. Ben followed in her wake, overwhelmingly impressed with her endless energy. They reached the ship in a matter of seconds, and Rey opened the door with the Force despite not understanding its controls.

She pulled the gunner out of the cockpit, depositing him on the battlefield, and Ben did the same with the pilot. Wordlessly, they climbed inside and shut the hatch. The fighter roared to life with its familiar sound, and Ben was suddenly Kylo Ren again, if only for a moment.

"So what's the plan?" Rey asked, fastening her seat restraints and taking inventory of the controls before her.

Ben shrugged, lifting the fighter from the ground amongst fire from Resistance guns. They hadn't told anyone they were commandeering the fighter; they couldn't, if this was going to work.

"We fly the fighter to the _Supremacy._ We land. We fight our way in."

Rey nodded. He couldn't see her behind him in the cockpit, but he knew just the same.

"Then what?" she asked.

The image of Hux filled his mind. She could see it. She understood.

"We kill Hux," she said, her voice full of realization. But then, the true realization hit them both at once.

Saying nothing, not acknowledging the mutual thought that passed between them, he set a course for the _Supremacy._ He keyed in the landing codes, faked a malfunctioning navigation system to excuse the re-landing, and pointed the ship towards the sky.

Abruptly, Rey changed the subject. "We will die before we reach the Throne Room," Rey said. He could feel the restraint it took her not shooting down the other First Order fighters as they passed.

"Maybe," he acknowledged. "We would also die on Vorill Four. Got a better idea?"

He could feel her anxiety rising as they approached the hangar bay. The sight only brought simultaneous familiarity and sickness in his gut. He had made this approach hundreds of times, but never like this.

The force field let them through, and the computer guidance system took over the controls for landing. The TIE fighter landed itself in a maintenance area, and crew surrounded, waiting to fix the ship.

Rey and Ben paused, anticipation rising. He felt the same synchronicity of heart and soul that he felt in the Throne Room, as they prepared to face the Praetorian Guard. Suddenly he knew they would be okay.

Everything happened in a rush. The door opened, they leapt out, lightsabers blazing, and set fire to the hangar bay. Alarms drowned out the yelling, but then their heartbeats deafened them. Troopers fell to the ground, but whether wounded or dead he didn't know.

They cut a path together. Perspiration covered their skin. He smelled burning, fabric and flesh. He heard grunts and pants and groans. Pain ricocheted from his side to his arm to his leg. He wasn't sure who it belonged to. Occasionally, he smelled copper. Blood.

The corridors of the Destroyer were eternal, lacquered black. He caught flashes, reflections. Their flickering blue/red blades lit the corridor like lightning, lit faces in horror. He only saw his actions in bursts a swing of the blade, an arcing of sparks.

Adrenaline coursed through him, made him shake.

They entered the elevator. White and black striped around them. The electronics hummed. Memories caught him like a strobe—Rey, soft hair, inching closer, pink lips. _Ben_.

Now he just heard her gasping breaths, her pounding heart. Their chests heaved in time with each other, just like the flickering of their blades.

"Are you ready for round two in the throne room?" she asked, burning eyes fixed on the door.

Red. Sparks. Her grunt. The pressure of her hand on his thigh.

Electricity prickled down his spine.

"There's only one way to end this," he said.

The elevator stopped.

The doors opened to reveal red-clad warriors. The Praetorian Guard reanimated.

Absurdly, his first thought was how different Hux's throne room was than Snoke's. Instead of scarlet walls, they were burnished black. Half a second later, his only thought was to block a blow. The force of the staff against him vibrated through his bones.

He heard Rey even when he could not see her. She fought like a feral animal, snarling with every cut and swing. He felt her this time, drawing strength from him. Her pain and rage brought strength and power.

She threw the guards back from them with the Force, astounding him.

Then he caught sight of him. Hux.

His vision went white-red with rage. He heard the roar torn from his throat before he realized he made it. The familiar feeling of lost control overwhelmed him.

He and Rey charged forward into the surging wave. He had one thought: clawing his way to Hux.

Shouting filled his ears. There were words, but he understood none of them.

Hux raised his blaster, aiming it directly at Ben's face.

Before Ben could react, Hux lifted from the ground. He dropped his blaster as his hands flew up to his neck. He choked, strangled out a gurgled breath. Ben froze, his blade before him.

Rey stood, her right arm outstretched, her face taut with cold rage. Her left arm was at her side, her blade pointing downward. He saw blood and sweat on her skin; loose tendrils of hair clung to her face. Her chest heaved with exertion, and yet she stared only at Armitage Hux, being held aloft by the Force, by her.

Time slowed. A thousand reflections of crimson robes fluttered in the polished walls. The room glittered with the red-blue pulsing of their sabers. The throne loomed above them, obsidian, cold. Ben's heartbeat pounded in his ears, thunderous.

What remained of Hux's guard regrouped to surge at them. Without thought, Ben threw them back against the walls.

He realized he drew closer to Hux, who hovered, unable to speak.

"Rey, drop him," he said softly.

He had never seen her like this. She hesitated a long moment before assenting, allowing him to slump to the floor.

Hux gasped in several breaths, rubbing his neck. "I knew you were alive," he spat, struggling to his knees.

Rey looked spectacular, standing there, glowering with disdain. Her skin shone in the purple light from her saber blade.

Ben felt a strange sense of calm. He addressed Hux calmly, his voice deep. "That makes you the traitor, doesn't it? Abandoning your Supreme Leader to die on a planet? Declaring yourself in his stead?"

Hux laughed hoarsely. "Says the man who murdered Snoke for this…this, _girl_."

Rey moved as if to choke him again, but Ben put his hand up, stopping her. He could feel her barely-contained rage, protectiveness, possessiveness, and she realized she felt those things about _him_. About Ben.

"What now, Kylo Ren? You kill me and then what? My guards kill you, my fleet kills your Resistance. You lose," Hux said, with a laugh.

Rey lurched forward but stopped herself before she swung at him. She vibrated with the force of her restraint. Ben was surprised. He had expected them to harbor opposite reactions in this moment; he had expected himself to be trembling with the effort of not murdering Hux, and her to be regarding them both calmly.

Ben ignored the taunting. "You killed my mother," he said.

Hux drew himself to his feet, shaking slightly with the effort. "Not personally, no. But I did hire the assassin." Hux looked at Rey, his mood shifting. "You know, Ren, I thought the Jedi would be the one to turn you, not the other way around."

Rey quaked beside him, he felt her rage rising like he had felt many times before in himself, prior to being taken by a tantrum that left destruction in his wake. Suddenly, there was nothing. She extinguished her blade.

"There's only one way this ends, Hux," she said, her voice clear.

Around them, the stunned guards were getting back to their feet.

Hux smirked. "I'm already dead, I know," he said. "But what amuses me is that this solves nothing. You kill me and the next person becomes Supreme Leader but ultimately the First Order crushes your Resistance."

Rey looked over at Ben, and he knew that she understood what must happen. It was the only way.

Rey returned her attention to Hux, and she ignited her blade anew.

Ben had not expected any of it to unfold this way. He had expected he would be the one to extinguish the light from Armitage Hux's eyes. Instead, he merely watched as Rey's blade cut through him.

Absurdly, Luke's words jumped to the forefront of his mind: _If you strike me down in anger, I will be with you forever_. Consciously or unconsciously, Rey had saved him from that eternity.

Hux fell to the ground with a decisive thud. Rey stared at him on the black tile for a long moment before deactivating her blade.

Ben turned to Rey, his eyes hardening. "You know I didn't intend for it to be this way," he said softly.

Rey's eyes sparkled with determination when they flashed up to meet his. "I know."

The guards hesitated around them, uncertain. Kylo Ren arguably remained the true Supreme Leader of the First Order, especially in light of Hux's betrayal. It was exactly this ambiguous loyalty that he planned to prey on at this moment.

It probably should have disturbed him how naturally his Kylo Ren persona returned. "Shouldn't you bow before your Supreme Leader?" he said, regarding the room boldly.

Rey's lips tightened as the guards slowly began to drop to one knee. He could feel her uneasiness. He wished he could speak aloud to her, to reassure her that he had not wanted to retake the throne, that he intended to only hold it as long as necessary.

"Better," he said, turning to ascend the throne. "You should know, Rey is also your Supreme Leader now."

Rey's heart quickened as panic seized her. She had not expected nor wanted any part of this rulership. But, he knew he would need her to sit alongside him for the Resistance to fall in with them.

Ben—Kylo Ren—sat on the throne, crossing his legs unaffectedly, like he belonged there. He waited, his face calm, as the guard fell back into line beside the throne. He swallowed forcibly as he surveyed the dead guards on the floor before him, and the body of Armitage Hux at Rey's feet.

He pushed a button on the armrest of the grand obsidian throne, addressing the entirety of the _Supremacy II_. "Loyal First Order, your true Supreme Leader, Kylo Ren, has returned to retake his rightful rule. Armitage Hux, traitor and deceiver, is dead."

Rey stepped over Hux's body to ascend the steps alongside him. She stopped, taking a seat on the edge of his armrest, looking out at his view.

"I have brought with me an equal leader to share the throne," he said. "You will treat and regard Rey of Jakku as you do me." The unspoken addition, _or there will be consequences_ , echoed in his tone.

"I require the command officers from the army and the fleet to the Throne Room immediately. Everyone else, await our orders."


	24. Chapter 24

FN-1964, or Brick, as he was better known to his teammates, enjoyed the thrill of battle. At least, he enjoyed it when it wasn't so one-sided, like it was here, on Vorill Four. The First Order was decimating the Resistance forces to the point that it was more of a slaughter than a battle.

Their new leader, Armitage Hux, had a reputation for bloodthirstiness. They had learned not to be surprised when he ordered them to fight to the last rebel standing. Hux, after all, had been the mastermind behind the extermination of Hosnian Prime. There were even rumors that he was behind the assassination of his own father, Brendol Hux, when he had become too weak.

So Brick was surprised when the FN commander, Captain Rev Thaster, ordered them to comply with a ceasefire through their in-helmet comm system.

As the FN Troopers regrouped, Brick couldn't believe it. "Supreme Leader Hux would never order a ceasefire," he told the others, who began to nod their agreement.

"Armitage Hux is no longer the Supreme Leader," Captain Thaster informed them, managing to keep most of his surprise from his tone. Brick would've loved to see his face, but instead was stuck viewing the same countenance of the Trooper helmet.

"Kriff," FN-2050 cursed, "are we gonna get a new Supreme Leader every week from now on?"

Thaster did not answer immediately, and anticipation rose in Brick's gut. Whatever the development was, it was interesting.

"Kylo Ren is back from the dead," Thaster said. Brick would've given a week's worth of recreation time just to see his companions' faces. "He had reclaimed the title of Supreme Leader, alongside the Jedi Rey of Jakku.

"They have ordered a ceasefire, while they prepare to negotiate with what's left of the Resistance."

Brick looked out at the hundreds of white-armored Stormtroopers dotting the battlefield. Even the AT-M6 walkers had shuddered to a stop and hulked silently above them.

"So now what?" FN-2050 asked.

Brick could almost hear fear in Thaster's voice when he spoke again. "Now, we await the orders of Supreme Leader Kylo Ren."

 _Force help us,_ Brick thought, remembering the stories he had heard of the terrible Kylo Ren.

* * *

At first, Poe had thought the Stormtroopers had stopped out of some misplaced hope of surrender. The ceasefire had been so sudden, so complete, he had then wondered if he was the last member of the Resistance alive.

"Poe?" Finn's voice over the commlink had brought him a profound sense of relief.

"Finn? What's going on?" he had asked, his hands trembling. He slowed his X-wing. He had insisted upon flying even now that he had been promoted to leader of the Resistance; if they were going out, he was going out with them.

"I don't know, Poe, but you better get back here. Something strange is happening."

When Poe landed his X-wing back at their base, it had taken all of his strength to walk past the makeshift triage and hospital at the entrance. So many of his people were wounded and dying. He wanted to help, to jump in at the triage, but he knew the High Command awaited him.

He burst into the command room to see the worried and dirty faces of Connix, Fin, Nunb, and Pava. They all were in various states of disarray, having been summoned back from their positions in the battle to discuss this sudden and unplanned ceasefire.

"Where's Rey?" Poe asked as they all turned to him.

"Don't know," Finn answered tensely. "She's not answering her comm link. She hasn't been found among the wounded yet, and no one has seen her or Kylo Ren on the battlefield in a while…"

Poe frowned. "What is going on?"

Connix stepped forward. "From what we've been able to determine, the First Order has called a ceasefire in preparation for asking us for negotiations."

Poe scoffed. "Negotiations." The way he said it sounded more like a curse word than a tactic.

"But something's off," Pava added. "There's nothing concrete yet, but the troopers appear perturbed. I think something's changed."

Poe met Finn's eyes, and an unspoken and panicked thought passed between them. Nausea rose in his throat.

"When and where was the last time someone saw Kylo and Rey?" he asked tersely. "I need to know."

* * *

"So, we've ordered a ceasefire. Now what?" Rey asked. She and Ben had retired to a private room to discuss their plan away from the royal guard. Supreme Leaders or not, their plan to compromise with the Resistance would not be accepted easily.

"Well, I think we have to orchestrate some sort of pseudo-surrender of the Resistance," Ben said. "The only way this works is if we make this all seem like a compromise to the Resistance, and a victory to the First Order."

Rey sighed. Poe and Finn were not going to like this. "I mean, I get that aside from somehow killing the entirety of the First Order, this was our best hope of saving any of the Resistance," Rey said. "But I don't think Finn and Poe are going to see it that way."

Ben frowned. "No. I imagine not. They're going to think I planned this all along."

Rey must've been silent for a moment too long, because Ben added, "I didn't, you know."

Rey offered Ben a sad smile. "I know you didn't." She looked at the table, frustrated. "I wish it didn't have to be this way."

It did, though. At least, it made the most sense that way. Rey had gone through a thousand scenarios in her head, but this was the one that allowed them to save the most of the Resistance, the most of her friends. More than that, if she and Ben were successful, it allowed them a position of power that would let them have a hand in instituting a more functional governing system. At this point, trapped and cornered by the military might of the First Order, it was something drastic, or it was death.

Rey thanked the Force for connecting her with Ben. He was uniquely positioned for this coup. Sure, he had been declared a traitor to the First Order, but, ultimately, it was his word against Hux's. And all they knew for sure is that Hux had lied when he said Kylo Ren was dead. Indeed, if their brief meeting with the general and admiral of the attack forces was any indication, the entirety of the First Order remained cautious of Kylo Ren, and in a way that very much allowed him an unobstructed rise to power again. They feared him and his mysterious power, and they would let him rule rather than test if he could choke them all to death with the Force.

"You're going to have to let me do the talking," Rey said, "assuming Poe agrees to negotiate at all."

Ben nodded. They both looked at each other for a long moment, examining each other's injuries and mussed hair.

Suddenly, Ben smirked, a twinkle in his eye. "Tell me, do you still have a 'thing' for Supreme Leader Kylo Ren?"

Rey blushed, remembering her unintentional confession of her…'thing' on the fuel station. The image of him ascending to the throne minutes ago admittedly had reminded her of that fantasy, as had his voice when he commanded the First Order to await their orders.

"Maybe," she teased. "Maybe if we save my friends from certain death at the hands of the First Order, we can have a little fun with that throne."

He smiled, his eyes flashing with hunger. "I called a ceasefire, didn't I? They're saved for now."

* * *

The Resistance High Command waited, troubled, for the emissary from the First Order to bring them news. Surely it couldn't be long before someone would explain the sudden ceasefire. With every second that passed, Poe's anxiety rose. Where was the First Order, and more troublingly, where had Kylo Ren gone?

Poe had begun to trust him, he realized. Their mission to Arkanis had gone smoothly, even if the intelligence they gathered had been proven useless given this unexpected attack. Kylo Ren had even saved one of their own, and he had gone back for Rey. A flawless act, if it was an act.

It had to be, Poe thought. The First Order shows up out of nowhere on their secret base, and Kylo Ren disappears? Anger and disgust clutched him—how had he been foolish enough to trust him? Poe had brought this on them all by allowing Kylo Ren in their midst.

Before Poe could berate himself further, Threepio shuffled into the room. "General, a First Order messenger wishes to speak with you. He is unarmed."

The whole room tensed. "Show him in," Poe answered.

A single Stormtrooper entered a moment later, holding his white helmet under his arm. Strangely, Poe found that unsettling. He had always known there were ordinary people beneath the white armor, but being confronted with it was a different thing.

"General Dameron, my name is Captain Thaster, and I am here on behalf of the Supreme Leaders of the First Order," he said.

At first, Poe didn't register what was unusual. Finn instead spoke, his voice harsh. "Did you say Supreme _Leaders_?"

"Yes," Captain Thaster confirmed. "Supreme Leader Kylo Ren, and Supreme Leader Rey of Jakku."

* * *

Ben looked down upon her from that obsidian throne, his countenance regal and absolutely _powerful_. His black hair framed his face like a dark halo, skimming his chiseled jaw. A crown wouldn't have looked out of place on his head, nestled in the choppy waves. He perched with an absolutely unaffected posture, his legs slung wide carelessly, like he belonged there.

Maybe he did.

She couldn't help but be reminded of her dark fantasies, of Supreme Leader Kylo Ren subserviently pleasuring her. The man who would bow to no one else in the galaxy would bow to her. And not only bow, but press his mouth against her cunt and lave until she screamed in exaltation.

Burning voracity ignited in her gut. Their synchronicity as they had taken the _Supremacy_ had primed her for this desperate lust. She could hear him grunting and gasping in the heat of battle, she watched his broad, strong shoulders heave in the elevator. Here they stood on the ashes of their victory, and she wanted to celebrate what they had made together, what they had razed together.

He looked off into the distance, not at her. It allowed her to appraise him boldly, to run her eyes over him like she had to memorize every swell and valley of his form. She imagined the chest she knew beneath the black fabric, the thighs she had clung to in the dark of night as he knew her, as he tore his name from her throat. Her eyes hesitated where his legs joined, tracing the intumescence there that he made no effort to hide.

Finally, his eyes dropped to hers. His chocolate irises were a thin border around the black of his pupils. His aura spoke of danger, of control on the verge of being lost, and it set her on _fire_.

"Leave us," he intoned darkly to the guard around them.

His gaze froze her. She felt her pulse in her chest, in her head, between her legs. A hint of fear made her breath catch in her throat, but if anything it only heightened her arousal.

"Rey," he said, and she wondered if she would ever get used to the way he sounded when he wanted her. His voice was velvet and sandpaper at once, a churning midnight sea. "Come here."

She swallowed thickly, and for a moment she couldn't breathe.

"Rey," he said, in that intoxicating voice, "you know I can take anything I want."

Somehow, her pulse quickened. If her heart beat any faster, she might faint. Boldly, she stepped forward, ascending the steps.

He sat forward as she approached. She bit her bottom lip nervously, and he rewarded her with a small gasp. He reached out with a black-gloved hand and seized her chin, his index finger and thumb pressing against her jaw.

"Supreme Leader," she gasped, and she felt his hand tremble slightly.

He held on for a moment, taking his turn to run his eyes down her like a hungry caress. Her breaths came shallower, and she couldn't bear to watch him, couldn't bear to be any more aroused. Her eyes closed, but she could feel him, could almost see herself through his eyes.

"It's hot in here," he said. "Undress."

His hand fell from her chin, and she reached up to tug off her tunic.

"Mm," he said, chastising her. "Look at me."

Her eyes fluttered open to meet his predatory gaze. She undressed with excruciating slowness, revealing her sun-kissed and freckled skin inch by precious inch. He leaned further forward, drawn hopelessly toward her by some magnetic energy.

Finally, she stood before him, naked and pink and soft in stark contrast to the room of black and sharp. She stood as he took another bold appraisal of her body as if he prepared to devour her.

He reached out, taking her wrist, and pulled her sharply to him. Sitting, his eyes were at the level of her collarbone. She could feel his breath on her breasts, and he ducked his head to take one of her nipples into his mouth. She moaned; his mouth was warm as his tongue swirled and his teeth raked. He tore off his gloves and her knees buckled. One of his hands grasped her ass, supporting her, and the other slipped between her legs.

One of his long, thick fingers ran the length of her slit, and he pulled away from her breast, shuddering.

"Kriff, Rey," he managed voicelessly, "you're _dripping_."

She leaned forward, her lips brushing against his ear as she answered. "All for you, Supreme Leader," she whispered.

He grunted, overcome, and his hands fell from her to tear at his own trousers. His cock sprang free, and his hands leapt to Rey's shoulders, forcing her to her knees between his legs. She stared at his erection for a long moment before meeting his eyes.

"Suck me," he commanded.

Not taking her eyes from his, she reached out, encircling his cock with her fingers. She brought it to her lips, pressing the head against them. Her tongue snaked out and ran up the slit. The sound he made was enough to make Rey squeeze her thighs together, trying to find relief from her own burning.

His eyelids drooped, heavy, as she took him into his mouth. She locked her eyes with his as she began to move her hand and mouth in turn. He began to moan and thrust at her as she set a rhythm, and his fingers entwined in her hair.

She teased and sucked with her mouth and her hands, until he was pulling at her hair, trying to get a better grip. He was vocalizing wantonly, and those sounds were enough to drive her insane.

Desperate to soothe her own arousal, she reached down with her free hand to pleasure herself. She sighed around him with relief.

His eyes fluttered open and he looked down at her. "Oh no, Rey. Patience."

She moaned around him in protest and frustration, but withdrew her hand. The vibration of her voice forced his eyes closed again. She adjusted her legs so she could sit on her heel, just for the pressure. _Force_ , he was so vocal and it threatened to drive her insane. She wondered if he would want her to finish him this way, with her mouth.

She continued pleasuring him until she thought he must want to come in her mouth, because there was no way he could last much longer if he was making _those_ sounds.

Suddenly, he let go of her. "Stop," he choked, and she pulled away from him.

His cock stood between them, shiny with her saliva and pink with his desperation. It bobbed up-and-down with his breaths as he tried to regain some semblance of control.

He pulled her to her feet. This time his voice was almost broken. "I need to kiss you, but please don't touch me," he said.

Their mouths met roughly, and his hand went to her cunt again. When his finger stroked her clit, she went rigid, breaking the kiss to gasp in a shaking breath. She melted into him, into his kisses, as his fingers continued.

He moved in slow circles on her clit at first, just enough stimulation to bring her higher but no closer to her orgasm. She pushed her hips against him, begging wordlessly for more pressure, more friction, anything to bring her relief instead of further insanity.

Finally, he acquiesced, moving his finger more quickly. Again she yanked her head back, needing more oxygen to stay upright. She writhed against him as her pleasure started to build, and she was suddenly aware of how exposed she was, naked in the throne room atop him.

"Force, Ben," she gasped, "I need you inside me."

He groaned in response, pulling her to straddle him atop the throne. His cock was pressed between them, and she fought the urge to grind against him, knowing he wouldn't last if she did.

She shifted to take him inside her, as he couldn't manage it himself in his current state of arousal. Anguished groans tore from their throats in unison, and Rey felt the unmistakable pressure building inside her.

Little sounds escaped her as she started to move on him. He thrust his hips hard up to her, moaning as her pussy tightened around him. She couldn't bear her own arousal any longer, and forced her right hand between them to stroke her own clit. His hands clutched her ass, clenching and releasing in time with his thrusts. She ran her left hand up her stomach to take a greedy handful of her own breast.

Her orgasm rose inside her like a burst of light. Every stroke of his cock pressed into the sensitive spot inside her, and the light burned brighter and brighter.

He reached his peak first, gasping raggedly and crying out her name. She could feel his cock twitching inside her, and that was enough to bring her over the edge. Her fingers moved faster on her clit until pleasure exploded in her core and warmth washed through her to her fingertips. Her vision whited out as stars burst inside her, and dizziness filled her head as she struggled to stay afloat on the sea of pleasure.

Their movements slowed, and Rey moved her arms to hang loosely around his neck. She leaned forward to meet his mouth in a sensual kiss. She kissed him lazily until finally her pulse started to slow.

She broke the kiss with a sigh, leaning forward to rest her head on his shoulder. He enveloped her in his arms, and she could feel his heart beating in his chest.

"Did I please you, Supreme Leader?" she asked, her voice teasing.

He laughed, and the sound vibrated through her. "Yes. Very much."

She remembered where they were, and pulled away to dress herself. He watched her before reluctantly refastening his trousers. "If the throne continues to have that effect on you, I might need to rethink giving it up," Ben teased, his eyes sparkling.

She shot him a dirty glare, standing on one leg to pull on her shoe. He laughed.

No sooner had Rey finished dressing than there was a knock at the door. "Supreme Leaders," a voice announced on the intercom, "Poe Dameron and the Resistance command have arrived."

Rey looked at Ben, and he indicated she should speak. She glanced down at the conference table, which had been brought in at their request for this very meeting.

"Show them in," Rey said.


	25. Chapter 25

Poe could barely stand still for the seething rage coursing through him. He couldn't even look at Finn standing next to him in the elevator. They were flanked by Stormtroopers, but for the first time, they were honored guests rather than prisoners.

The light flickered rhythmically as they passed each floor. His anger rose just like the elevator. He expected this betrayal from Kylo Ren, but not from Rey.

The elevator slowed, and Poe looked at the doors. They slid open, revealing a black lacquered grand throne room.

"The Supreme Leaders await you," one of the Stormtroopers said, holding the doors opened.

Poe felt Finn looking at him, but he still couldn't bear to meet his eyes. He took a deep, steadying breath, and stepped onto the reflective tile.

The throne loomed over him like some sort of mythical beast. Its hulking black form seemed a symbol for every betrayal and failure he had suffered in his life, for every loss he had endured through this fight. It stared at him and seemed to grow with every step he took forward.

At least it was empty, he supposed. How could he endure the sight of Rey – or worse, Kylo Ren – sitting atop that horrific construct?

Poe tore his eyes from the throne, instead staring at the long table that was set on the left side of the room. Four chairs sat on each side of it, with a pitcher of water and glasses set in the middle. Poe couldn't help but scoff; as if a conference table could counteract the imagery of emperorship the entire room had been carefully constructed to convey.

A guard clad in red robes stepped forward. He (or she, Poe supposed; even the face was covered by the red robes) carried a red weapon in their hand.

"Supreme Leader Rey will only be a moment," they said.

"Supreme Leader Rey," Finn repeated acidly. "I don't suppose I'll ever be used to that."

A doorway appeared in the shellacked wall, where Poe hadn't noticed a seam. Rey stepped through it, wearing a black tunic and dark grey pants. Despite her pristine clothing, a bandage was wrapped around her arm, and she had several cuts and bruises on her exposed face and arms. Her waist was cinched with a patent leather belt, and her hair was pulled back into an elegant tuck.

When her eyes fell on them, a hesitant smile crossed her face. "Finn, Poe."

"I think General Dameron and Commander Finn would be more appropriate, Supreme Leader," Poe said, hardly recognizing his own voice for its harshness.

Her face was as expressive as always, and the wound flashed like blood in her eyes. She took a small step forward. "General Dameron, Commander Finn, won't you sit down?"

Finn answered before Poe could take a breath. "I'm more comfortable standing, thank you."

Rey sighed, and for an instant, Poe's rage faltered. Beneath the clothes, in spite of the title, Rey was still the young girl from Jakku. She pulled out the chair nearest her and sat down.

"I'm sorry," she said, looking at the table. "I didn't mean for this to happen. _We_ didn't mean for this to happen."

"Where is Kylo Ren, anyway?" Finn said, glancing pointedly at the door.

Rey glanced between them, and then dropped her eyes to the table again. "I asked him not to come. I thought it might be easier with just the three of us."

Poe took a step forward, his earnest plea surging forth. "How could you, Rey? I'm not surprised this was Kylo's goal all along, but you?"

Rey shut her eyes. "It wasn't his goal. I don't expect you to believe that but it wasn't." Her brown eyes flashed up to them, and their intensity bore into Poe's chest. "Do you want to hear what happened, or have you already made up your mind not to believe it?"

Poe and Finn looked at each other. For once, their wordless communication was a non-start. Poe knew he had to hear her out, even if he ended up not believing her, but he wasn't sure what Finn was thinking. Poe sighed heavily.

"Alright, Rey," he said, turning back to her, "go ahead."

Finn scoffed and turned away. Poe crossed his arms but nodded at Rey to speak.

"You were both out there," Rey said. "You know what it was like. We were slashing into an endless wall of Stormtroopers, watching the Resistance, my friends, falling to the ground like slaughtered animals. The Walkers were bearing down on us, crushing the bodies under their metal feet."

Poe looked down, his nostrils flaring. She certainly had a way with words. The echoes of the battlefield flashed around him. If this was manipulation, she had mastered it.

"It suddenly became clear that in order for the Resistance to come out on the other side, we would have to kill Hux."

Dark. Dark, but ultimately reasonable. Poe would have killed the bastard himself, given the opportunity, for the Resistance or for revenge.

"We stole a TIE fighter, faked a malfunction, and landed here, on the _Supremacy II_. I was sure we would die in the corridors before we reached the throne room, but somehow…"

Rey trailed off and glanced over at the throne. "Suddenly, we were here. The guard mobbed us. Hux tried to shoot Ben. I killed him."

The silence that followed smothered them. Even Finn turned part of the way around to look over his shoulder at her. Poe realized he was hanging onto the chair back in front of him with white knuckles.

"Of course, once he was dead, there was no way Ben and I could make it out of here alive. Except for one thing: Ben still had a legitimate claim to the helm of the First Order. He stayed the guard with barely a raise of his finger, and suddenly here we were, Supreme Leaders.

"But, I have to admit, it kind of works out. This way, we can dismantle the First Order from the top down. Only…we need your help."

"Sounds like you've got it all figured out to me," Finn said, turning back and striding toward her. "Let me guess, you just need us to surrender, and we have your word the First Order won't take over the galaxy."

"Finn," she pleaded, "just listen. Together we can topple the First Order before they even know what's happening. It will just take a little…acting to make it happen."

Poe frowned. He didn't like this plan, but he had to admit it made sense. The Resistance wouldn't be able to outmatch the First Order's military might, and the Republic wouldn't come to their rescue. That had been made clear time and time again. This way, there would be less bloodshed, and maybe even a more gentle transition.

"Look, guys, I don't like it either. We won't be able to reverse everything the First Order did too quickly, or we'll lose our support. It'll be a difficult time. We'll have to do things that we don't like, but, ultimately, we come out on top."

Poe shoved his hands into his pockets. He looked at her for a long moment, considering. Was it worth compromising his values, even temporarily, for a victory long-term?

"Honestly, Rey, I'm considering it. But, I want one thing first, before I decide."

Rey's lips tightened, but she nodded. "Of course, Poe. Anything."

"I want to talk to Kylo Ren. Alone."

* * *

Rey paced back-and-forth in Ben's quarters. She had tried to sit calmly on the bed, waiting for him to return. But, anxiety had filled her with energy, and it had become a choice of pace or scream. What did Poe want with Ben, and could Ben find his humility for long enough to grant it?

Rey had no illusions. Ben Solo was a gentle man to her, but he remained a man with a fragile ego and a defensive personality. If Poe prodded at him too much (well, while she was being honest with herself, not very much at all), they were liable to end up in a testosterone-driven brawl that would end with no peace at all.

For once, the Force-bond was frustratingly silent. She couldn't observe even the emotions of the meeting, no matter how she tried.

She sighed, looking at the door nervously. No, she was just going to have to wait and hear from him in person. And until then, she was just going to have to trust it would be okay.

* * *

Ben sat across from Poe at the conference table. He crossed his legs and looked at Poe, his brow furrowed in confusion. This was the last thing he expected to come of Rey's meeting with them. Fighting, yes. Refusal to compromise, yes. A private audience with Poe Dameron, no.

Poe was staring at him, arms crossed. Finn stood off to one side, facing away from them. The minutes passed in tense silence.

"General Dameron, I must confess, I wasn't expecting a private conference."

Poe didn't answer immediately. Ben hoped beyond hope he hadn't ruined their chance for Rey's resolution.

"It's not what I thought I wanted, either," Poe said finally. "Certainly not when I came here thinking you had manipulated Rey into opposing us."

Ben frowned. He knew that Poe had never grown to trust him, but he had thought that they had grown past the idea of straight back-stabbing. Had Poe truly believed that this was his plan all along?

"What proof do I have that you didn't lead the First Order to us?" Poe said, his calm tone in direct contrast to his words.

"Proof?" Ben asked. "None, I suppose. But you have my word."

Finn pivoted suddenly. "And what good is Kylo Ren's word to us?" he snapped. "You've done a complete 360, and even if we had started to believe you had changed, why would we continue to believe you now?"

"I don't know," Ben admitted. "Do you have an idea of how I could prove my loyalty to you, or is this just a painful session where you point out how little you trust me?"

Poe glared at him. "I don't know yet. Any suggestions?"

Ben bristled, but forcibly swallowed his emotions. "Look. I wanted to kill Armitage Hux. That's what I planned to do. The rest of it was an afterthought. Declaring us Supreme Leaders was a desperate ploy to protect us. To keep her alive."

Finn and Poe looked at each other. "You really love her, don't you?" Finn said.

Ben laughed shortly. "Has that ever been in question?"

Poe regarded him with an inscrutable expression. "So let's say we get through this. Years from now, there's peace, a new republic. What happens then? Are you and Rey married, still together?"

Against his will, Ben's face softened. "I hope so."

Poe suddenly reached across the table and poured himself a glass of water. "So tell me, Ben Solo, what is the plan for the dismantling of the First Order?'


	26. Chapter 26

"This is hopeless," Pava said.

The entirety of the Resistance High Command was gathered around in the remnants of the Resistance base, seated on crates and the occasional chair. Mugs of caf in various stages of cooling dotted the floor and any unoccupied flat surface. Rey and Ben, dressed in stark First Order black and grey, sat between them.

They had chosen to negotiate here instead of the _Supremacy II_ to try to avoid seeming overly off-putting to the remainder of the Resistance. To the First Order, it was an arguably neutral ground, seeing as the Resistance lacked the military might to make a move against them. Despite this, the First Order security team didn't take well to the idea of their two Supreme Leaders being dispatched there unguarded. To appease them, two of the red-clad guardsmen had accompanied them even into this meeting, making Rey deeply uncomfortable.

Her earlier conversation with Finn and Poe also took place in front of the – well, her, she supposed – guardsmen, and she already feared they would reveal Ben's and her plan to take down the First Order from the inside. The guards had been specially chosen and specially sworn to serve the Supreme Leader and keep their secrets under penalty of death, but she wondered if this extended to the potential end of their entire livelihood. Should she and Ben succeed, there would be no need for an elite guard, as there would be no Supreme Leader to protect.

"Rey?"

She looked up to see the entire group staring at her, and she realized she must have mistakenly stopped listening a few minutes ago.

"I'm sorry," she said. "Lost in thought. Can you repeat that?"

"Poe was saying that he doesn't see how this is going to work. Somewhere down the line, the First Order devotees are going to figure out that we are slowly returning freedom to the masses," Connix said. "Once that happens, the First Order will inevitably splinter and we will once again be left fighting a war."

Rey looked around the circle, seeing defeat and exhaustion on the faces around her. They had been talking in circles for hours, and it always seemed to come back to a place of lost hope.

"If only we still had the Jedi as symbols of peace to look to," Pava said pointedly, and the pressure of the gazes only felt harder.

Rey and Ben met each other's eyes. They were not the last Force-sensitive people in the galaxy, and, not even the last to wield lightsabers. Rey had not forgotten about Luke's living legacy turned dark. The Knights of Ren remained out there, in hiding, and Rey suspected their allegiance could be changed with a little persuasion from Ben.

But Ben's rage surged at the suggestion of the Jedi Order, and he spoke without his usual measured tone. "The Jedi Order are in the past." Rey looked at her lap, and he took a breath before speaking again. "We can't rely on a myth to keep the peace now."

All eyes were on her again. She could feel it. "Ben's right. Even if we could rebuild something like the Jedi Order, it would take years. And it would take longer to imbue it with the respect the Jedi had. We're going to have to hope we can keep hold of enough of the First Order's military and resources that we can turn the fight in our direction once it breaks out again."

"It seems like a long shot," Connix said nervously, looking around at the others.

"A longer shot than we had before?" Pava asked, a tinge of hope bleeding into her voice.

Poe took a deep breath, meeting Rey's gaze with determination. "I don't think we have a choice. I think we have to go for this." He stood, and BB-8 rolled out from around the corner to meet him. "But once we start, time will be of the essence. We only have 24 hours to contact the Resistance supporters and get them onboard with our 'surrender,' and we have less than that to get us rehearsed enough that this looks good.

"Threepio," he called, and Rey heard the familiar creaking of the gold protocol droid's steps shuffling towards them, "we're going to need a lot of help with this treaty, and we don't have a lot of time to do it."

Poe looked at Rey and Ben again, and she saw the familiar fire in his eyes. "Alright, Supreme Leaders, it's time to lay out your terms."

* * *

The last 24 hours had been a marathon of publicity, falsification, and acting. It had taken them all through the night to construct a passable treaty of surrender for the Resistance, laying out the terms of the surrender as well as granting immunity for the remaining Resistance members. Before they had even finished, a First Order droid team was cataloguing and inspecting the Resistance fleet and armory to assimilate the ships and supplies into the grand machine of order.

Of course, Rey, Ben, Poe, and Finn had been barely involved with the bureaucratic tangle since the treaty went public. Instead, they were recording statements and holo-messages and sound clips to be broadcast throughout the galaxy announcing the good news. Of course, before they were whisked away to create the official First Order-branded news, they had to record and encrypt secret ones to inform the Resistance supporters of their plan and to warn them to go along with it. They had spent at least 12 of the last 24 hours in front of holo-cameras pleading with the Resistance and First Order alike to play nice and to support the treaty.

This left the four of them harrowed and barely awake in the private lounge of the _Supremacy II_ , once again with faces in the steam of cups of caf. None of them had the strength to speak again, and Rey felt like her voice was spent for the foreseeable future.

But, at least for now, it seemed their plan had worked. They had heard back from hundreds of planets, both Resistance and First Order, and they had agreed to the treaty and looked forward to a new era of cooperation. There were still almost a hundred planets left to respond, and fifty or so that had not been so pleased, but it was a start.

"Supreme Leaders," a voice said, interrupting their waking sleep.

Not another holo-recording, Rey pleaded to no one at all. Please.

"I think it's time for you to get some rest."

Rey looked up to see one of the many First Order officers who had guided them through the publicity maze of the day. He held the door open as if tempting them to sweet, sweet freedom.

"Are there no more messages to record?" Ben asked, in a tone that dared the man to make them record another message. Rey was almost surprised to hear that his voice wasn't hoarse.

"We have what we need for now. Come, I can show Dameron and Finn to their rooms."

Rey started to stand, as did the others. "Remember," Rey said, "Dameron and Finn are to be accommodated as honored guests."

"Of course, Supreme Leader," he said, with a slight bow. It took all of Rey's self-control not to flinch.

"We will hear of it if our orders are ignored," Ben said in his Kylo Ren voice. Again, Rey was careful not to react.

"Yes, Supreme Leader. Their quarters are comfortable and well-prepared." This time, the man's voice had a slight tremble.

Ben nodded and gestured that the man should lead the way. Poe and Finn followed him, and Ben's hand found its way to the small of Rey's back. If she hadn't been so damn exhausted, it might've sent a thrill through her.

When they reached Ben's quarters, the sight of the bed brought relief. They both stripped perfunctorily, donned sleepwear, and collapsed onto the mattress.

"Just so you know how tired I am," Ben said, his voice already thick with sleep, "I don't think I would even fuck you if you begged."

Rey would've laughed at that, if she hadn't already been asleep.

* * *

When she awoke hours later, Ben still snored softly beside her. She couldn't help but smile slightly at the image of the Supreme Leader, his hair sticking out in all directions, with a fine coat of dark stubble, and just a hint of drool at the corner of his mouth. More than that, she couldn't help but smile because she was somehow privileged enough to be allowed this luxury with the man she loved.

Quietly, Rey crawled out of the bed and tiptoed into the 'fresher. She took out a clean towel from the cabinet and set out a fresh set of clothes, preparing for a much-needed shower.

"Politics?"

Rey barely stifled the scream that rose in her throat as she whirled around to face her intruder. Of course, the voice was unmistakable, and she was not surprised to see the translucent blue form of Luke Skywalker sitting on the sink counter.

Rey's heart pounded, and she gulped in several breaths to steady herself as the adrenaline started to fade. "Master Skywalker! Did you have to startle me like that?" she hissed, stacking her linens on the toilet lid.

Luke laughed, crossing his phantom legs. "No. But it was more fun that way." He regarded her with a bemused expression and warmth in his eyes. "I thought I warned you to stay away from my nephew."

"You did," she admitted, "in no uncertain terms." She shrugged, trying to appear more unaffected than she felt. "But, like every good student, I learned when not to listen to my teacher."

He chuckled again. "You know, Master Yoda would like you…" His eyes roamed her face as if searching for something she hadn't yet told him. "I have to admit, when I made that warning, I didn't expect you to be able to warm the heart of a cold-blooded, Dark side murderer."

Rey bristled, and she took a challenging step forward, like she had that night on Ahch-To when she had fought him over Kylo Ren's redemption. "There was still Light in him," she said tersely, "like I said that night."

"I know," he said. "That's why I went to him on Crait. He needed to confront the skeletons in his closet, starting with me."

Rey was taken aback. She had thought for all this time that Luke died still not believing in Kylo Ren's redemption.

"I was a lousy teacher when he needed me," Luke said, and Rey felt the honesty in his tone. "So I became a great one when he thought he didn't." He leaned forward, and for a moment, when he looked into her eyes, Rey almost forgot he was a Force-apparition. "I've been watching you and him, Rey. You're not what I imagined, but you've done great things."

She looked away; suddenly, his intensity was too much to bear. "You were right. It was time for the Jedi to end."

Luke laughed shortly. "I know you stole the Jedi texts, Rey. I also know you couldn't read them. That ancient language was lost to all but a select few long ago…"

Rey's cheeks reddened. She had spent so many hours since her hasty departure from Ahch-To trying to make sense of the Jedi texts, wondering if she could rebuild what was lost. "Ben and I can make something new," she said with an unconscious glance at the door, looking beyond it at the sleeping figure in the next room.

He smiled. "I hope you do. But you will make mistakes too, young padawan. Someday your Skywalker child may wreak as much havoc on the galaxy as the few before them."

Something akin to panic shot through her chest at the idea of a Skywalker child of her own. She looked for words to answer him, but none came.

"You came to me and forced me to be a teacher when I wanted no part of it," Luke said. "But you were what I needed to face the reality around me. And, I'm so proud of what you've become."

Rey's heart warmed with those words, but she still doubted if she could live up to them.

"I won't even try to advise you on politics. That was my sister's game. But, Rey, if you trust in hope, and Light, and the Force, I think you can come through this thing with the right side on top."

Rey smiled, but her thoughts dwelled still on Ben's bitter heart. "I don't know if Ben can ever forgive you," she said.

Luke shook his head. "Don't worry about that, Rey. He will." Luke paused, taking a deep breath and turning to stare through the door as Rey had done moments ago. "If I can forgive him, he can forgive me. I forgive him, Rey."

"Master Skywalker, I never got the chance to properly thank you for teaching me," she said earnestly, turning back towards him.

"Don't worry about it, kid," he said, but he was already gone. "I can only take half that credit anyway."

Rey sighed, stepping towards the shower. The Force-apparitions never seemed to stick around very long.

"Rey?" he said, and she whipped back around, hoping he would be there again. But he wasn't. "May the Force be with you."

Rey sat down heavily on the rim of the tub. She wasn't sure if it was a blessing or a curse that the Force-sensitive could visit from beyond the grave. Regardless, she was glad to reconcile with Luke after their tense parting. If only Ben would do the same. Still, she believed that what Luke said was true. Ben would find it in himself to forgive his old master someday.

Besides, Ben's conflict was what made him who he is, what led them down this path together. Every reminder she had to accept that was helpful and humbling. She hadn't fixed Ben Solo, she could only be here to support him through his redemption. And, if she had anything to say about it, she would be here until the bitter end.


	27. Chapter 27

"Supreme Leader?"

Rey turned. It had taken her weeks to get used to responding to that title, but one morning she had woken up to find it had become as familiar as her own name.

"Yes, Lieutenant?" she answered.

The morning sunlight from the window behind her illuminated the chamber in an almost blinding white. Of course, Chandrila had not been their first choice for a meeting of this magnitude, but it had made a statement. A statement that Ben Organa-Solo had felt was important to make.

The verdant hills and soft valleys had come as a surprise to Rey. How could someone from a place so lush and green turn to the mechanical scenery of a space-faring life? Rey couldn't help but imagine, even if a bit unrealistically, Ben as a child running on the hills under the watchful eyes of his parents.

"The Republic Senate will be ready for your statement soon."

Rey nodded. The lieutenant hesitated a moment before he realized he was being dismissed. As the door closed behind him, Rey turned back to the view. The blue sky with its few white clouds seemed a good omen for the day, and they needed a good day.

In the months since she and Ben had taken the reins of the First Order, they had endured more than their fair share of ups-and-downs. If had only taken a day or two for the first dissenting whispers to spread through the ranks, and they had spent the rest of the time on the edge of paranoia and being one step ahead of catastrophic downfall.

It had been tense. Of course, she had expected the tensions to run high between the Resistance commanders and the First Order pseudo-regime, but the fights with Ben had surprised her. They had enjoyed an uncharacteristically smooth start to their relationship, but, as anyone might have predicted from the alliance of two strong personalities, there was kindling to spare.

The white streets of Hanna City seemed to drink in the sunlight and use it to generate their own glow. Off in the distance, the Silver Sea sparkled. The Senate house bore barely a cobweb from its years of abandonment in the time since the First Order came to be. The Republic had voted to move their capital to Hosnian Prime a few years later, and certainly that was no longer an option for a meeting.

Rey could imagine the Senate house in its prime, bustling with senators and assistants and protocol droids. She could almost feel Leia's presence in every hallway, fighting to protect the rights of every good thing in the galaxy.

She was so caught-up in the illusion, in fact, that she failed to notice the door opening again.

"Rey, they want us by the doors," Ben said, ignoring the splendorous view to look upon her face.

She felt self-conscious in the trappings of Supreme Leadership. The grey-and-black gown she had donned for the occasion felt like someone else's clothes, and the way her hair was piled on her head in ridiculous intricacy made her feel like she was wearing a costume. More than anything else, she knew it made it more obvious that she was a child playing a part rather than an actual Supreme Leader of the First Order. In fact, stepping in front of the New Republic Senate would only put her childishness on parade and ruin their entire plan.

"You look beautiful," Ben said, interrupting her spiraling thoughts. She caught his eyes, and there was no doubt that he meant it.

Sure, they had had their fights, but it was always worth it in the end.

She stepped forward to take his arm, and he led her down the hallway towards the Senate chambers. Gradually, he had softened his Supreme Leader persona until he had settled on this one; he reminded Rey of a stricter, less forgiving Bail Organa, or at least what she knew of Leia's father from a few holo-recordings and history lessons. Ben had taken to politics like it was his birthright, and, she supposed it was. But, as anyone would expect for a son of the infamous Han Solo, his scoundrel side shone through, too, and was most obvious in his collusions with the Resistance while they were supposed to be celebrating the First Order's might.

"Are you ready to make a statement that will cause a last burst of war?" he asked her teasingly. "That is, if we don't get assassinated outright."

Rey laughed, looking at him with disbelief. "Really? That's the joke you make right before we step out on the galactic stage? 'Hope we don't get assassinated tonight'?"

He smiled a half-smile and pulled her over to kiss her on the top of her head. She squeezed his hand tighter as he pulled away. A protocol droid waved them over.

"Supreme Leaders, you will be summoned in but a moment!" the droid said somewhat frantically. Rey couldn't help but think of Threepio, and a small wave of nostalgia washed through her.

Ben turned her to face him and looked down at her with fondness. He brushed a stray strand of hair behind her ear, and her heart fluttered like it had the first time he had kissed her. He still had the same power over her. His gaze was so magnetic.

The doors opened beside them, and the announcement echoed out into the hallway. "And now, to address the Senate, Supreme Leader Kylo Ren and Supreme Leader Rey of the First Order."

* * *

Ben stepped out into the Senate chambers with Rey on his arm, and for a moment, he couldn't hear anything. Applause or rancorous disapproval were indistinguishable from the blood rushing in his ears. The chamber was cavernous and dark compared to the lights that shone on their faces. At best, the senators were silhouettes in the distance – expectant, judgmental silhouettes.

"New Republic," his voice rang out clear and steady, surprising him. "Thank you for hosting us with such gracious hospitality."

He realized he was holding Rey's hand with a deathly grip, and he took a deep breath. He dropped his hand to the small of her back.

"Truth be told, Rey and I are weary of the title 'Supreme Leader.' It was a pass-down title from our predecessors, and I think it diverges from our current goals."

Murmurs passed through the crowd, and Ben looked around the room to make careful eye contact with a smattering of senators.

"More than that," he said, "I am weary of the name I gave myself. Kylo Ren was a construct to separate myself from my parents, and as time passed, I realized that their legacy was something to cherish rather than fear. For this reason, I wish to be known by my given name again. I stand before you as Ben Organa-Solo, and I only hope I can do that name justice here in the chambers, as my mother once did."

He swallowed. The crowd had fallen silent, and it was almost more disconcerting than the low voices. Rey looked up at him with a smile, and he took a deep breath again.

"The First Order has outlived its own conflict. The centrist movement had legitimate goals, and we can all agree that disagreement is what drives growth in government and in our own lives.

"But legitimate intentions warped into terrible actions under the First Order's hands," Ben said. "I will live the rest of my life working to repent for my crimes, and I don't expect I ever will.

"In that vein, Rey and I have come to announce the First Order's surrender to the New Republic. We still have desires for reform, but the actions taken by the First Order are too onerous to abide. We can accomplish reform through the mechanisms of the New Republic, if they are willing to have us."

Louder voices rippled through the chamber. Ben and Rey looked at each other.

"If anyone was going to assassinate us," Rey said softly, "I imagine it'd be about now."

Ben laughed, and his hand fell away from her back as she took a step forward.

"I don't have a name or legacy to fall back on," Rey said, and the voices fell away again. "I was a scavenger, born to a nameless family on the desert planet of Jakku. I was born in the graveyard of the Empire, where the skeletons of their Star Destroyers rot, forgotten. It's easy to pretend that wars don't leave scars, but Jakku reminds us that the damage from our conflicts exists long past them.

"I joined the Resistance, believing in their cause. Naively, I thought that just because I believed we were right, it was different. I will forever stand by the values upheld by the Resistance, but even the supposed 'good guys' leave collateral damage."

Rey paused, and Ben knew the words were hard for her. She had always been a woman of action, not words. Political speeches were not a common purview of desert scavengers. She had grown so much in such a short time, and he was both proud of her and sad for the circumstances.

"I joined with the First Order as an emissary for the Resistance's values. Ben Organa-Solo and I were forced to cooperate under some…unfortunate circumstances, and that allowed me the unique position to work as his equal even when he may have been…resistant to other representatives."

Ben couldn't help but laugh. Certainly that was a politically correct oversimplification of their journey to this point, but he could have never constructed that retelling himself.

"We have worked hard together to reach this point of surrender. We have continued to cooperate with the leaders of the Resistance to move our new alliance toward a more common goal."

Rey looked back at Ben, and he couldn't help but think that Leia would be proud of her.

"But now, it is time for all three organizations to come together. Only the merging of the New Republic, the First Order, and the Resistance can produce a long-standing peace for the galaxy."

Rey stood for a moment to let her words stand before stepping back to Ben's side. The silence filling the chamber was oppressive, heavy.

And then, quietly at first, there was applause.


	28. Epilogue

A pink-and-gold glow illuminated the sky as the three suns approached the horizon. The sea breeze carried a gentle chill as the evening deepened, and it was just enough to make the crackling fire welcoming. Spring had laden the air with the smell of flowers, and birds sang the sunset a gentle song on the background of rushing waves.

A smattering of small cottages dotted the grassy slopes, positioned just-so for a lovely view of both the ocean and the distant mountains. They were just beyond the reaches of the jungle foliage, but flowering plants and tropical trees spilled between the cottages as if reaching for the shore. A bit out-of-place for the idyllic scene was the hulking metallic YT-1300f Freighter perched a few hundred yards from the collection of dwellings.

"Rey, come here," Ben said, breaking her meditation. She had been practicing combat forms barefoot on the soft grass, taking advantage of the tranquil scene and pleasant weather.

She opened her eyes, shifting easily into a form that allowed her to look back at him. "Ben, I'm trying to meditate," she scolded, but her lips turned into a gentle smile.

Ben pouted, his pink and full lips deliciously tempting in the light of the fire. He held out a glass of wine invitingly, and she sighed. She broke her form and walked over to join him by the fire.

He reclined on a blanket wearing a light tan tunic and grey leggings, a departure from his usual dark robes. She too was dressed more comfortably, as this was a rare evening they got to spend alone.

Since the treaty with the New Republic, Rey and Ben had relinquished their power in favor of an amicable exile. Ben certainly had wanted to distance himself from his crimes, and Rey had no interest in continuing a political career. Besides, the Jedi Order had already revealed the dangers of the Force-sensitive assuming positions of governance, and that was not a mistake either of them cared to repeat.

They had retired instead to this gorgeous tropical moon, part of an uncharted system, to begin something new. Ben had invited the Knights of Ren to begin again with him, and some of them had come. The rest of their members were Force-sensitive members of every race, invited to participate in a learning community and, if they desired, a sort-of monastic order of the Unifying Force.

Rey sat down on the blanket, snuggling under Ben's arm and taking the glass of wine from him. He nuzzled her scalp, and the warmth that washed over her wasn't just from the fire.

"Ben," she said, "do you, perchance, have an ulterior motive here?"

He laughed quietly, and it vibrated in his chest. He didn't answer immediately, which made Rey a little nervous.

"Rey, have you ever considered having children?"

Rey's eyebrows raised in surprise, and she took a deep drink from her wineglass. "With you?" she answered, somewhat incredulously. "Or in general?"

He made a noncommittal sound. "Either," he answered, a bit too casually.

Rey decided to make light of the question rather than panic. "Well, the Jedi Order forbids attachment, you know," she teased, taking another sip of wine.

He rested his chin on her head. "Rey, I'm serious," he said. Persistent, for better or for worse.

She couldn't resist another quip. "Ben, if you want to have sex, you could just ask." This time, he didn't answer, and she sighed. "Don't you think the galaxy has had enough Skywalker children?" she said. "And besides, aren't you skipping a step?"

This time, he sighed, but she could tell he was smiling by his tone when he spoke again. "I'm not technically a Skywalker, you know."

She shook her head slightly. "That reminds me. I've been meaning to ask since the Senate meeting – since when do you go by Organa-Solo?"

He chuckled. "Well, you didn't have a last name, so I figured I needed enough for both of us."

At that, she grinned. "Oh, is that so?"

"You know, if you like, I could…share."

Rey's heart stopped beating. She swallowed.

"Rey, I'm serious."

Rey sat up and turned to look at him. His brown eyes reflected the orange light of the fire. The suns had almost set now, and they were surrounded in blue twilight. Her friends had always insisted she had expressive eyes, but she maintained they paled in comparison to his. Now, he looked at her earnestly, like his whole heart and soul were pouring out in his gaze.

She couldn't find her voice. She felt like she might fall into his eyes.

"Rey, marry me."

She set down the wine glass. Suddenly, she remembered to breathe again.

"Okay," she answered, her voice breaking only slightly.

He smiled, reaching out to take her hand. "Okay?"

"Okay," she repeated, stronger this time. A grin spread across her face, and she leaned in to kiss him.

They kissed deeply, and she could taste the wine on his lips. Again, a warmth independent of the fire rose in her chest. Rey Organa-Solo. She could get used to that.

He broke the kiss and rested his forehead on hers. For a moment they sat like that, savoring the blissful moment.

"Rey," Ben whispered, a smirk starting on his face, "do you want to have sex with me now?"

She laughed, and joy filled her from her head to her toes. She smiled at him, a mischievous twinkle in her eye. "Okay," she said, shoving him backwards.

She kissed him, straddling him and sandwiching his face between her hands. He held onto her waist with a firm but gentle grasp. The heavy floral air reminded her of their brief stay on Gatalenta, and she wondered where she would be when she was remembering this night with the same nostalgia.

"You know," she said, winking at him as she pulled away, "I think most people do this more often in a bed."

One of his hands ran down her back, caressing her ass and sending a tingle up her spine. "We can move, if you like."

She started to push his tunic up, eyeing his abs with familiar hunger. "Eh," she said, tracing them with her finger, "I don't think we're most people."

He laughed, wiggling the tunic over his head a bit ungracefully. She sighed with contentment as she once again admired his toned body; their regular training had only done his physique favors. She leaned down, nipping at his collarbone.

"Rey," he said, his body relaxing as she kissed his neck.

She ran her hands down his arms, entwining her fingers with his.

"Rey," he repeated, a bit more insistently.

"Mmm?" she answered, not willing to stop her ministrations.

He shoved her back a little and stripped her shirt over her head. She laughed, tearing her breast band off and enjoying the way he watched her breasts tumble down.

"You know," she said, pressing his arms into the ground. She leaned over him, dangling one of her breasts, nipple standing at attention, just by his mouth. "I don't think I'll ever tire of our games."

She leaned further, allowing him to reach her, and he sucked her nipple into his mouth, eliciting a gasp from her. He started to use his teeth, and she whimpered.

Ben gently pushed her up, and she shivered as the breeze cooled the saliva on her breast. "Shh," he warned, "we are practically in public."

Rey stole a furtive glance at the nearest cottages, but no one was outside. Their blanket was tucked up in the shadow of their own, but it would not be a stretch for a passerby to catch more than a glimpse.

"So we have to be quiet?" she asked, rubbing his nipples with her thumbs. He strangled a groan.

"Rey," he warned, but she was already moving down to pull off his leggings.

"What?" she asked innocently, tossing his leggings off to the side and starting on his underwear. "I thought you wanted to have sex now."

He was already quite hard. She was always impressed with how quickly he…rose to the occasion. A side effect of his history of suppressed sexuality or a testament to her power over him, she didn't know. Either way, she liked it.

She grasped him by the base of his shaft and cupped his balls with her other hand. She looked directly into his eyes, licked her lips, and sucked the head of his cock into her mouth.

He choked back a sound, instead throwing back his head. She swirled her tongue around once before starting to move her hand and mouth back-and-forth on him. One of his hands worked into her hair, and, every so often, he would shove her just a little bit harder.

Once he had regained control of himself, he returned his gaze to her. Time to up the ante. She worked her other hand on his balls as she increased the pace.

"Fuck," he gasped, and she pulled off of him.

"Ben," she purred, "shh. We're practically in public."

"Oh, we're going to play that game, are we?" he answered, his chest still heaving. "Well," he continued, sitting up to switch places with her, "two can play at that."

He stripped her trousers and her underwear off in one motion, spreading her legs so he could kneel between them. He leaned down to catch her mouth in a sensual kiss, his hand resting on her thigh. She wriggled beneath him, trying to reach his cock again to continue her teasing.

His hand grazed to rest on the inside of her thigh, and she throbbed in anticipation of his touch. His other hand pinched her nipple, and she squeaked in surprise. He smiled against her mouth and slid his hand to her pussy.

She moaned softly as his fingers parted her lips and skimmed over her clit. He circled there for a moment, making her head spin, before his fingers slipped slowly into her.

She couldn't suppress the groan that followed, and she certainly couldn't suppress the new wetness that coated his fingers. She rocked her hips gently in encouragement as he moved his mouth to her cunt. Both of her hands took greedy handfuls of his hair and she let his tongue bring her to orgasm.

She writhed beneath him, holding her breath to stop herself from crying out his name. For a moment, she nearly forgot where she was and why she had to be quiet. There was nothing in her head but pleasure, and her hands fell to her sides to pull at the blanket.

"Ben Organa-Solo," she gasped as he pulled away from her smiling like a loth-cat with a mouse, "you win this round."

"Hmm," he said, eyeing her with a predatory gaze, "so what is my prize?"

She sat up again, tracing his pecs with her finger. "Lay down and let me show you."

She straddled him again, wasting no time in sliding his cock inside her. She took him to the hilt in one motion, relishing in the sound of his breath being knocked out of him by the sensation. She rocked on him, leaning so he was hitting her sweet spot with every thrust. Her fingernails raked his chest, and he grunted as she grasped a bit too hard and left crescent-shaped marks in his skin.

"Rey," he sighed.

She upped the tempo, using her body weight to increase the force of her strokes. She leaned down to kiss him sloppily, and she could taste herself on his lips. She wrapped her fingers into his hair. His arms crossed over her back, pulling them closer together.

A moan tore from her throat as he started to rock against her in time to her strokes. He was losing control of himself, and the sounds that escaped him never failed to drive her insane.

She tried desperately to hold on until after he came, but his pelvis was rocking against her clit and he was making those heady sounds. It wasn't her fault. She was set up for failure.

She tightened around him. "Ben," she said, prolonging the syllable like a moan. Her body kept moving instinctually as she climaxed, and she realized she was pulling at his hair.

"Fuck, Rey," he said, and then he was cumming too. He grunted and groaned in her ear as she rode out her decrescendo.

She lay atop him as he stilled. They both worked to catch their breath. She could hear his heart pounding in his chest.

It was well and truly dark now. The fire had started to die down, and the birds' song had faded to chirping insects instead. Rey shivered slightly with the chill in the air, and Ben wrapped his arms around her back.

"Rey Organa-Solo," he said once his breaths were even. "I like the sound of that."

She smiled, lifting her head to look at him. "Me too."

He ran his hand down her cheek. The stars twinkled in his eyes. "We should get inside," he said. "It's getting cold."

She stood reluctantly, gathering her clothes and forgotten wine glass. He did the same, but not before draping the blanket around her shoulders.

"You know," he said as they started into their cottage, "I still think we should talk about children."

Rey rolled her eyes. "Come on, Ben. Vader? Kylo Ren? It's not like the Skywalker children have been favorites of the galactic population."

Ben shook his head, holding the door open for her. "What about Luke? Stand-up guy, that one. And Leia!"

"Really?" she said, turning back to regard his still-naked form silhouetted in the doorway. "Luke a stand-up guy? Never thought I'd hear you say that."

He side-stepped her, shrugging slightly. "I've never had to make this argument before."

She laughed, and he pecked her on the cheek.

"We'll talk about it tomorrow," he said, as she disappeared toward the 'fresher.

"We'll see," she answered.

The door shut behind him. The fire had been reduced to glowing embers. The light of the moon reflected on the surface of the _Millennium Falcon_ , and the nocturnal song of insects, birds, and the crashing waves filled the air. The cottage windows glowed yellow-orange, but no other sign of people stirring could be appreciated from outside.

"Rey," Ben's voice radiated from inside the cottage.

"Ben," Rey warned, her voice echoing from the 'fresher, "don't push your luck."

"Rey, I love you."

There was a short pause, and a frog chirped outside the window.

"Ben, I love you too."

And Rey knew that she had, at long last, found her family.


End file.
